Etymograph

English

force

Force comes from Old French force ‘strength’, from Late Latin fortia, from Latin fortis ‘strong’, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *bʰerǵʰ- ‘to rise, high’.

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*bʰerǵʰ-1‘to rise, high’reconstructed
  2. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEfortis1‘strong’
  3. Late Latinc. 200–600 CEfortia1plural of fortis
  4. Old Frenchc. 842–1400force1‘strength’
  5. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500force1
  6. Englishearliest quotation 1591force1

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, English force
  2. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1591, William Shakespeare, The Second Part of Henry the Sixt, […]: “which now they hold by force, and not by…”.

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*bʰerǵʰ-Wiktionary, English force‘to rise, high’reconstructed
  2. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEfortisWiktionary, English force‘strong’
  3. Late Latinc. 200–600 CEfortiaWiktionary, English forceplural of fortis
  4. Old Frenchc. 842–1400forceWiktionary, English force‘strength’
  5. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500forceWiktionary, English force
  6. Englishearliest quotation 1591forceWiktionary, English force. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1591, William Shakespeare, The Second Part of Henry the Sixt, […]: “which now they hold by force, and not by…”

Linked words

through Proto-Indo-European *bʰerǵʰ- ‘to rise, high, hill’

berry, borough, burgess, bourgeois, barrow, burglar, 23 more

through Proto-Italic *forktis

8 more

through Old Latin forctis

fortitude, 12 more

through Latin fortis ‘strong’

comfortable, comfort, fort, 13 more

through Late Latin neuter

neutral, marvel, mandate, menstrual, coliseum, 17 more

through Late Latin fortia

2 more

Another origin of force

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*bʰerǵʰ-‘to rise, high, hill’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*forktis‘strong, powerful’reconstructed
  3. Old Latinc. 700–75 BCEforctis
  4. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEfortis‘strong, brave’
  5. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEfortia
  6. Late Latinc. 200–600 CE*fortiāre‘compel’reconstructed
  7. Old Frenchc. 842–1400forcier‘force, compel’
  8. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500forcen
  9. Englishtodayforce

Another origin of force

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*pers-‘to spray, splash’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*fursaz‘waterfall’reconstructed
  3. Old Norsec. 800–1350fors‘waterfall’
  4. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500force
  5. Englishtodayforce

Another origin of force

  1. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500forcen
  2. Englishtodayforce

Today it means

noun Ability to influence; strength or energy of body or mind; active power; vigour; might; capacity of exercising an influence or producing an effect.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “force”. 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 / Proto-Indo-European *bʰerǵʰ- / force

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