English
inquire
Inquire comes from Latin inquīrō ‘to seek for’, and perhaps goes back to Proto-Indo-European *kʷeh₂- ‘to acquire’.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*kʷeh₂-1‘to acquire’uncertain
- Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*kʷaizeō1uncertain
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEquaerō1‘to seek, look for’
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEinquīrō1‘to seek for’
- Englishearliest quotation 1590inquire1
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor
- 1 Wiktionary, English inquire
- Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1590, Edmund Spenser, Book II, Canto X: “Canute had his portion from the rest, The which…”.
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*kʷeh₂-Wiktionary, English inquire‘to acquire’uncertain
- Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*kʷaizeōWiktionary, English inquireuncertain
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEquaerōWiktionary, English inquire‘to seek, look for’
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEinquīrōWiktionary, English inquire‘to seek for’
- Englishearliest quotation 1590inquireWiktionary, English inquire. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1590, Edmund Spenser, Book II, Canto X: “Canute had his portion from the rest, The which…”
The story
From Latin inquīrō (‘to seek for’), composed of in- (‘in, at, on; into’) + quaerō (‘to seek, look for’), of uncertain origin, but possibly from Proto-Italic *kʷaizeō, from Proto-Indo-European *kʷeh₂- (‘to acquire’).uncertain The source flags this step as uncertain.
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *kʷeh₂- ‘to acquire’
conquest, questionnaire, 13 more
through Proto-Italic *kʷaizeō
through Latin quaerō ‘to seek, look for’
quest, acquisition, query, conquer, exquisite, requisite, 15 more
through Latin inquīrō ‘to seek for’
Today it means
verb To ask (about something).
Sources
Sources: Wiktionary, “inquire”. 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 *kʷeh₂- / inquire