Etymograph

English

relay

Relay comes from Middle French relai ‘reserve pack of hounds’, and goes back to Old French relaier ‘to leave behind’.

  1. Old Frenchc. 842–1400relaier1‘to leave behind’
  2. Middle Frenchc. 1400–1600relai1‘reserve pack of hounds’
  3. Englishearliest quotation 1846relay1

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, English relay
  2. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1846, – 1848 April 1, Retribution: “There is a snaky gleam in her hard grey…”.

Lineage

  1. Old Frenchc. 842–1400relaierWiktionary, English relay‘to leave behind’
  2. Middle Frenchc. 1400–1600relaiWiktionary, English relay‘reserve pack of hounds’
  3. Englishearliest quotation 1846relayWiktionary, English relay. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1846, – 1848 April 1, Retribution: “There is a snaky gleam in her hard grey…”

Every English word from Old French relaier

Today it means

noun A new set of hounds.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “relay”. 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 / Old French relaier / relay

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