Etymograph

English

respect

Respect comes from Latin respectus ‘a looking at, regard, respect’, from speciō ‘to see’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *speḱ-.

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*speḱ-1‘to see’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*spéḱyeti1‘to be looking at’reconstructed
  3. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*spekjō1‘to observe’reconstructed
  4. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEspeciō1‘to see’
  5. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CErespiciō1‘look at’
  6. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CErespectus1‘a looking at’perfect passive participle of respiciō
  7. Old Frenchc. 842–1400respect1
  8. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500respect1
  9. Englishearliest quotation 1595respect1

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, English respect
  2. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1595, The Tragedie of King Richard the Second. […] (First Quarto): “[T]hou reſpecteſt not ſpilling Edwards bloud: [...]”.

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*speḱ-Wiktionary, English respect‘to see’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*spéḱyetiWiktionary, English respect‘to be looking at’reconstructed
  3. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*spekjōWiktionary, English respect‘to observe’reconstructed
  4. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEspeciōWiktionary, English respect‘to see’
  5. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CErespiciōWiktionary, English respect‘look at’
  6. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CErespectusWiktionary, English respect‘a looking at’perfect passive participle of respiciō
  7. Old Frenchc. 842–1400respectWiktionary, English respect
  8. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500respectWiktionary, English respect
  9. Englishearliest quotation 1595respectWiktionary, English respect. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1595, The Tragedie of King Richard the Second. […] (First Quarto): “[T]hou reſpecteſt not ſpilling Edwards bloud: [...]”

Linked words

through Proto-Indo-European *speḱ- ‘to see, to look, to observe’

spy, suspicion, microscope, espionage, skeptic, kaleidoscope, gyroscope, espy, 112 more

through Proto-Indo-European *spéḱyeti ‘to be looking at, to keep looking at’

scope, skeptical, endoscopic, macroscopic, spectroscopic, 110 more

through Proto-Italic *spekjō ‘to observe, see’

speculation, speculative, speculate, inconspicuous, especial, specular, 22 more

through Latin speciō ‘to see’

special, despite, specific, species, perspective, spite, spice, inspector, expectation, aspect, spectrum, inspection, spectacular, conspicuous, specify, specimen, spectacle, inspect, spectator, retrospective, retrospect, expectant, specter, speculator, specious, circumspect, 25 more

through Latin respectus ‘a looking at, regard, respect’

respite, 1 more

Today it means

noun An attitude of consideration or high regard; a feeling of admiration or esteem.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “respect”. 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 *speḱ- / respect

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