Etymograph

English

dissent

Dissent comes from Latin dissentiō ‘to differ in sentiments, disagree, be at odds,…’.

  1. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEdissentiō1‘to differ in sentiments, disagree, be at odds, contradict, quarrel’
  2. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500dissenten1
  3. Englishearliest quotation 1654dissent1

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, English dissent
  2. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1654, John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon the Book of Job: “Some are so eristical and teasty, that they will…”.

Earlier history uncertain. See Wiktionary.

Lineage

  1. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEdissentiōWiktionary, English dissent‘to differ in sentiments, disagree, be at odds, contradict, quarrel’
  2. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500dissentenWiktionary, English dissent
  3. Englishearliest quotation 1654dissentWiktionary, English dissent. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1654, John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon the Book of Job: “Some are so eristical and teasty, that they will…”

The story

From Middle English dissenten, from Latin dissentiō, dissentīre (‘to differ in sentiments, disagree, be at odds, contradict, quarrel’), from dis- + sentiō, sentīre (see sense).

Full etymology on Wiktionary

Linked words

through Proto-Italic *dis-

debate, discover, discipline, disciplinary, disguise, disciple, diffuse, defraud, dissuade, 12 more

Today it means

verb To disagree; to withhold assent. Construed with from (or, formerly, to).

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “dissent”. 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 dissentiō / dissent

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