Etymograph

English

intrigue

Intrigue comes from Latin intrīcō ‘to entangle, perplex, embarrass’, from trīcae ‘trifles’, and perhaps ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *ter- ‘to rub’.

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*ter-1‘to rub’uncertain
  2. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEtrīcae2‘trifles’
  3. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEintrīcō3‘to entangle, perplex, embarrass’
  4. Italianc. 1300–presentintricare3
  5. Frenchc. 1600–presentintrigue3
  6. Englishearliest quotation 1533intrigue3

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, Latin tricae
  2. 2 Wiktionary, Latin intrico
  3. 3 Wiktionary, English intrigue
  4. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1533, Thomas More, The Debellacyon of Salem and Bizance […]. Chapter XVIJ.: “And as wililye as thoſe ſhrewes that beguyle hym…”.

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*ter-Wiktionary, Latin tricae‘to rub’uncertain
  2. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEtrīcaeWiktionary, Latin intrico‘trifles’
  3. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEintrīcōWiktionary, English intrigue‘to entangle, perplex, embarrass’
  4. Italianc. 1300–presentintricareWiktionary, English intrigue
  5. Frenchc. 1600–presentintrigueWiktionary, English intrigue
  6. Englishearliest quotation 1533intrigueWiktionary, English intrigue. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1533, Thomas More, The Debellacyon of Salem and Bizance […]. Chapter XVIJ.: “And as wililye as thoſe ſhrewes that beguyle hym…”

Linked words

through Proto-Indo-European *ter- ‘to rub’

term, thrill, tram, thro, 35 more

through Latin trīcae ‘trifles’

treachery, inextricable, 3 more

Today it means

noun A complicated or clandestine plot or scheme intended to affect some purpose by secret artifice; conspiracy; stratagem; the practice of engaging in hidden schemes.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “intrigue”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entries for Latin tricae, Latin intrico. 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 *ter- / intrigue

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