translator

The story

1. Latin · derived fromtrānslātor
2. Old French · derived fromtranslatour
3. Middle English · inherited fromtranslatour
4. French · borrowed fromtranslator
5. Latin · borrowed fromtrānslātor
6. English todaytranslator

Directly from Latin trānslātor and French translator, and also from Middle English translatour, from Old French translatour, translateur, etc., from Latin trānslātor, from trānslātus (“carried across”) + -or (“-er: forming agent nouns”), from trānsferō (“carry across”), from trans (“across”) + ferō (“bear, carry”), q.v. Equivalent to translate + -or.

First known use, by meaning

• 1382 A person or thing that translates various forms of text.
• 1850 Synonym of interpreter, a person or thing that immediately interprets direct speech.
• 1855 A person or thing that expresses an idea or style in a new form or medium.
• 1952 A machine that converts inputs into a pattern of holes on a punch card.
• 1956 A relay station that retransmits incoming television signals after automatically adjusting their frequency to avoid interference.
• 1957 A program that converts commands from one computer language into another.
• 1535 Synonym of carrier, a person who transports something, now particularly (Roman Catholicism, rare) holy relics.
• 1594 Synonym of repairer, particularly of leather or cloth goods.