Etymograph

English

equip

Equip comes from French équiper ‘to supply, fit out’, and goes back to Old French esquiper ‘to embark’.

  1. Old Frenchc. 842–1400esquiper1‘to embark’
  2. Middle Frenchc. 1400–1600esquiper2
  3. Frenchc. 1600–presentéquiper1‘to supply, fit out’
  4. Englishearliest quotation 1711equip1

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, English equip
  2. 2 Wiktionary, French équiper
  3. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1711, SUNDAY, July 2, 1711: “The country are led astray in following the town,…”.

Earlier history uncertain. See Wiktionary.

Lineage

  1. Old Frenchc. 842–1400esquiperWiktionary, English equip‘to embark’
  2. Middle Frenchc. 1400–1600esquiperWiktionary, French équiper
  3. Frenchc. 1600–presentéquiperWiktionary, English equip‘to supply, fit out’
  4. Englishearliest quotation 1711equipWiktionary, English equip. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1711, SUNDAY, July 2, 1711: “The country are led astray in following the town,…”

Linked words

through Proto-Germanic *skipōną ‘to ship, sail, embark’

ship, 3 more

Today it means

verb To supply with something necessary in order to carry out a specific action or task; to provide with (e.g. weapons, provisions, munitions, rigging).

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “equip”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entry for French équiper. 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 / Old French esquiper / equip

Shirt and support for this word