Etymograph

English

quest

Quest comes from Latin quaesta ‘tribute, tax, inquiry, search’, from quaerō ‘to ask, seek’, and perhaps ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *kʷeh₂- ‘to acquire’.

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*kʷeh₂-1‘to acquire’uncertain
  2. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*kʷaizō1uncertain
  3. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEquaerō2‘to ask, seek’
  4. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEquaesta2‘tribute, tax, inquiry, search’
  5. Anglo-Normanc. 1066–1400queste2
  6. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500quest2‘a legal inquest or investigation’
  7. Englishearliest quotation c. 1603–1606quest2

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, Latin quaero, which cites LIV
  2. 2 Wiktionary, English quest
  3. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: c. 1603–1606, William Shakespeare, The Tragedie of King Lear: “Cease your quest of love.”.

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*kʷeh₂-Wiktionary, Latin quaero, which cites LIV‘to acquire’uncertain
  2. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*kʷaizōWiktionary, Latin quaero, which cites LIVuncertain
  3. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEquaerōWiktionary, English quest‘to ask, seek’
  4. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEquaestaWiktionary, English quest‘tribute, tax, inquiry, search’
  5. Anglo-Normanc. 1066–1400questeWiktionary, English quest
  6. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500questWiktionary, English quest‘a legal inquest or investigation’
  7. Englishearliest quotation c. 1603–1606questWiktionary, English quest. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: c. 1603–1606, William Shakespeare, The Tragedie of King Lear: “Cease your quest of love.”

Linked words

through Proto-Indo-European *kʷeh₂- ‘to acquire’

enquire, 13 more

through Latin quaerō ‘to ask, seek’

acquisition, inquiry, exquisite, conquer, inquisition, enquiry, inquire, query, requisite, inquisitor, 12 more

Today it means

noun A journey or effort in pursuit of a goal (often lengthy, ambitious, or fervent); a mission.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “quest”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entry for Latin quaero. 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- / quest

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