Etymograph

English

procurer

Procurer comes from Old French procureor ‘agent’, from Latin prōcūrātor ‘manager, overseer, superintendent’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *kʷeys- ‘to see’.

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*kʷeys-1‘to see’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*kʷoizā1‘care’reconstructed
  3. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEcūra1
  4. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEcūrō1‘to arrange, see to, attend to, take care of, look after, ensure, tend to’
  5. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEprōcūrō1‘to manage, administer’
  6. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEprōcūrātor2‘manager, overseer, superintendent’
  7. Old Frenchc. 842–1400procureor2‘agent’
  8. Anglo-Normanc. 1066–1400procurour2
  9. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500procurour2‘a procurator’
  10. Englishtodayprocurer2

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, Latin procurator
  2. 2 Wiktionary, English procurer

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*kʷeys-Wiktionary, Latin procurator‘to see’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*kʷoizāWiktionary, Latin procurator‘care’reconstructed
  3. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEcūraWiktionary, Latin procurator
  4. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEcūrōWiktionary, Latin procurator‘to arrange, see to, attend to, take care of, look after, ensure, tend to’
  5. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEprōcūrōWiktionary, Latin procurator‘to manage, administer’
  6. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEprōcūrātorWiktionary, English procurer‘manager, overseer, superintendent’
  7. Old Frenchc. 842–1400procureorWiktionary, English procurer‘agent’
  8. Anglo-Normanc. 1066–1400procurourWiktionary, English procurer
  9. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500procurourWiktionary, English procurer‘a procurator’
  10. EnglishtodayprocurerWiktionary, English procurer

Linked words

through Proto-Indo-European *kʷeys- ‘to see’

shire, curate, 5 more

through Proto-Italic *kʷoizā ‘care’

ensure, assure, insure, 5 more

through Latin cūra

sure, security, secure, curator, sicker, manicure, 9 more

through Latin cūrō ‘to arrange, see to, attend to, take care of,…’

accurate, cure, incurable, curation, 5 more

through Latin prōcūrō ‘to manage, administer’

proxy, 3 more

Today it means

noun A person who procures or obtains things

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “procurer”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entry for Latin procurator. 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 *kʷeys- / procurer

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