English
code
Code comes from Middle English code ‘system of law’, from Latin cōdex ‘tree trunk’, and ultimately from caudex.
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEcaudex1‘the stock or stem of a tree’
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEcōdex1‘tree trunk’later form of caudex
- Old Frenchc. 842–1400code1‘system of law’
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500code1‘system of law’
- Englishearliest quotation 1872code1
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor
- 1 Wiktionary, English code
- Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1872, Francis Wharton: “the mild and impartial spirit which pervades the Code…”.
Lineage
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEcaudexWiktionary, English code‘the stock or stem of a tree’
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEcōdexWiktionary, English code‘tree trunk’later form of caudex
- Old Frenchc. 842–1400codeWiktionary, English code‘system of law’
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500codeWiktionary, English code‘system of law’
- Englishearliest quotation 1872codeWiktionary, English code. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1872, Francis Wharton: “the mild and impartial spirit which pervades the Code…”
The story
Verb etymology 1, verb sense 7 is an ellipsis of code blue (‘medical emergency’).
Word family
English words that share an ancestor with code, grouped by the ancestor they share, most familiar first.
through Proto-Indo-European *kewh₂- ‘to strike, hew, forge’
through Middle English code ‘system of law’
6 more relatives in the full family tree
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Today it means
noun A short textual designation, often with little relation to the item it represents.
Sources
Sources: Wiktionary, “code”. 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 caudex / code