Etymograph

English

jet

Jet comes from French jet ‘spurt’, from Latin iactus ‘a throwing, a throw’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *(H)yeh₁-.

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*(H)yeh₁-1‘to throw’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*(H)yéh₁kt ~ *(H)ih₁ként1reconstructed
  3. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEiaciō1‘to throw, hurl, cast, fling’
  4. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEiactus1‘a throwing, a throw’
  5. Vulgar Latinc. 100–700 CE*iectus1reconstructed
  6. Old Frenchc. 842–1400get1
  7. Frenchc. 1600–presentjet1‘spurt’literally ‘a throw’
  8. Englishearliest quotation c. 1588–1593jet1

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, English jet
  2. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: c. 1588–1593, William Shakespeare, The Lamentable Tragedy of Titus Andronicus: “Why, lords, and think you not how dangerous It…”.

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*(H)yeh₁-Wiktionary, English jet‘to throw’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*(H)yéh₁kt ~ *(H)ih₁kéntWiktionary, English jetreconstructed
  3. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEiaciōWiktionary, English jet‘to throw, hurl, cast, fling’
  4. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEiactusWiktionary, English jet‘a throwing, a throw’
  5. Vulgar Latinc. 100–700 CE*iectusWiktionary, English jetreconstructed
  6. Old Frenchc. 842–1400getWiktionary, English jet
  7. Frenchc. 1600–presentjetWiktionary, English jet‘spurt’literally ‘a throw’
  8. Englishearliest quotation c. 1588–1593jetWiktionary, English jet. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: c. 1588–1593, William Shakespeare, The Lamentable Tragedy of Titus Andronicus: “Why, lords, and think you not how dangerous It…”

The story

Borrowed from French jet (“spurt”, literally “a throw”), from Old French get, giet, from Vulgar Latin *iectus, *jectus, from Latin iactus (‘a throwing, a throw’), from iacere (‘to throw’).

Full etymology on Wiktionary

Linked words

through Proto-Indo-European *(H)yeh₁- ‘to throw’

year, hour, trajectory, catheter, enema, abject, jut, iambic, jetsam, 36 more

through Proto-Indo-European *(H)yéh₁kt ~ *(H)ih₁ként

objective, projection, objection, projectile, objector, dejection, 22 more

through Latin iaciō ‘to throw, hurl, cast, fling’

project, disease, ease, object, adjacent, injection, gist, conjecture, adjective, inject, ejaculation, ejection, eject, ejaculate, subjection, joist, jetty, interject, jettison, 30 more

through Vulgar Latin *iectus

jess, 2 more

Another origin of jet

  1. Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEΓάγαιGágasas Γάγας‘a town and river in Lycia’
  2. Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEΓαγάτηςGagátēs
  3. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEgagātēs
  4. Old Frenchc. 842–1400jayet
  5. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500get‘jet, hardened coal’
  6. Englishtodayjet

Another origin of jet

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*(H)yeh₁-‘to throw’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*(H)yéh₁kt ~ *(H)ih₁kéntreconstructed
  3. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEiaciō‘to throw, hurl, cast, fling’
  4. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEiactus
  5. Vulgar Latinc. 100–700 CE*iectusreconstructed
  6. Old Frenchc. 842–1400get
  7. Frenchc. 1600–presentjet‘throw’
  8. Englishtodayjet

Today it means

noun A collimated stream, spurt or flow of liquid or gas from a pressurized container, an engine, etc.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “jet”. 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 *(H)yeh₁- / jet

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