English
receiver
Receiver comes from Anglo-Norman receverre, and goes back to Proto-Indo-European *keh₂p-.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*keh₂p-1root named by Wiktionary · steps between not traced
- Anglo-Normanc. 1066–1400receverre1
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500receyvour1
- Englishearliest quotation 1791receiver1
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor
- 1 Wiktionary, English receiver
- Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1791, James Boswell, Life of Johnson: “A man can live in thick air, but perishes…”.
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*keh₂p-Wiktionary, English receiverroot named by Wiktionary · steps between not traced
- Anglo-Normanc. 1066–1400receverreWiktionary, English receiver
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500receyvourWiktionary, English receiver
- Englishearliest quotation 1791receiverWiktionary, English receiver. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1791, James Boswell, Life of Johnson: “A man can live in thick air, but perishes…”
Formed from receive + -er
Latin capiō ‘to take’
Latin recipiō ‘to take back, accept’
Old French recevoir
Middle English receyven
English receive
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *keh₂p-
principal, princess, participant, unacceptable, incapable, inception, receptor, interception, princely, incipient, occupier, perceptive, misbehave, recuperate, recuperation, 10 more
Today it means
noun An official whose job is to receive taxes or other monies; a tax collector, a treasurer.
Sources
Sources: Wiktionary, “receiver”. 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 *keh₂p- / receiver