Etymograph

English

ace

Ace comes from Latin as ‘unity, copper coin, the unit of coinage’.

  1. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEas1‘unity, copper coin, the unit of coinage’
  2. Old Frenchc. 842–1400as1
  3. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500as1
  4. Englishearliest quotation c. 1658ace1

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, English ace
  2. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: c. 1658, Dr. Henry More: “He will not bate an ace of absolute certainty.”.

Lineage

  1. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEasWiktionary, English ace‘unity, copper coin, the unit of coinage’
  2. Old Frenchc. 842–1400asWiktionary, English ace
  3. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500asWiktionary, English ace
  4. Englishearliest quotation c. 1658aceWiktionary, English ace. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: c. 1658, Dr. Henry More: “He will not bate an ace of absolute certainty.”

The story

Inherited from Middle English as, from Old French as, from Latin as, assis (‘unity, copper coin, the unit of coinage’), probably borrowed from Etruscan.

Full etymology on Wiktionary

Linked words

through Middle English as

as

Today it means

noun A playing card showing a single pip, typically the highest or lowest ranking card in a game.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “ace”. By Wiktionary contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0, via kaikki.org (dump of Oct 3 2026); text adapted and restructured. Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word. License.

Etymograph / Latin as / ace

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