Etymograph

English

privilege

Privilege comes from Latin prīvilēgium ‘ordinance or law against or in favor of an…’, from prīvus ‘private’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *per- ‘in front’.

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*per-1‘in front’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*preiwos1‘separate’reconstructed
  3. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEprīvus2‘private’
  4. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEprīvilēgium2‘ordinance or law against or in favor of an individual’
  5. Anglo-Normanc. 1066–1400privilege2
  6. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500privilege2
  7. Englishearliest quotation 1941privilege2

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, Latin privus
  2. 2 Wiktionary, English privilege
  3. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1941, George Orwell, The Lion and the Unicorn: “People who at any other time would cling like…”.

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*per-Wiktionary, Latin privus‘in front’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*preiwosWiktionary, Latin privus‘separate’reconstructed
  3. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEprīvusWiktionary, English privilege‘private’
  4. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEprīvilēgiumWiktionary, English privilege‘ordinance or law against or in favor of an individual’
  5. Anglo-Normanc. 1066–1400privilegeWiktionary, English privilege
  6. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500privilegeWiktionary, English privilege
  7. Englishearliest quotation 1941privilegeWiktionary, English privilege. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1941, George Orwell, The Lion and the Unicorn: “People who at any other time would cling like…”

Linked words

through Proto-Indo-European *per- ‘in front’

first, before, support, far, per, report, further, press, fear, opportunity, practice, price, port, pre, appreciate, afford, primary, ford, prior, prime, forth, practical, pregnant, prize, precious, parade, par, praise, interpretation, ferry, pirate, fare, porch, pardon, interpreter, afar, primitive, pragmatic, prix, pore, 152 more

through Latin prīvus ‘private’

private, privatization, privy, privation, 1 more

Today it means

noun An exemption from certain laws granted by the Pope.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “privilege”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entry for Latin privus. 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 *per- / privilege

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