Etymograph

English

rest

Rest comes from Old English ræst, from Proto-Germanic *rastō ‘interval’, of uncertain origin.

  1. Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*rastō1‘interval’reconstructed
  2. Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*rastu1reconstructed
  3. Old Englishc. 450–1150ræst1
  4. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500rest1
  5. Englishearliest quotation 1611rest1

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, English rest
  2. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1611, The Holy Bible, London: […] Robert Barker: “And the land had rest fourscore years.”.

Lineage

  1. Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*rastōWiktionary, English rest‘interval’reconstructed
  2. Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*rastuWiktionary, English restreconstructed
  3. Old Englishc. 450–1150ræstWiktionary, English rest
  4. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500restWiktionary, English rest
  5. Englishearliest quotation 1611restWiktionary, English rest. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1611, The Holy Bible, London: […] Robert Barker: “And the land had rest fourscore years.”

The story

From Middle English rest, reste, from Old English ræst, from Proto-West Germanic *rastu, from Proto-Germanic *rastō, of uncertain origin; possibly derived from Proto-Indo-European *h₁reh₁- (‘to rest’) or *Hre(h₁)s- (‘to flow, rush’).uncertain The source flags this step as uncertain.

Full etymology on Wiktionary

Word family

English words that share an ancestor with rest, grouped by the ancestor they share, most familiar first.

through Proto-Indo-European *h₁reh₁- ‘to rest’

  • row ← rowen ← rōwan ← *rōaną
  • rare ← rārus
  • rudder ← rodder ← rōþor ← *rōþr ← *rōþrą
  • roo ← rō
  • ramshackle ← ransaken ← rannsaka ← *razną
  • ransack ← ransaken ← rannsaka ← *razną
  • rother ← rōþor ← *rōþr ← *rōþrą ← *rōaną

5 more relatives in the full family tree

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Another origin of rest

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*ros-reconstructed
  2. Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*rastijan‘to rest’reconstructed
  3. Old Englishc. 450–1150restan‘to rest’
  4. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500resten
  5. Englishtodayrest

Another origin of rest

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*steh₂-‘to stand (up)’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*sth₂éh₁yeti‘to stand’reconstructed
  3. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*staējōreconstructed
  4. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*staēō‘to stand’reconstructed
  5. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEstō‘to stand’
  6. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CErestō‘to stay back, stay behind’
  7. Old Frenchc. 842–1400rester‘to remain’
  8. Old Frenchc. 842–1400reste
  9. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500reste
  10. Englishtodayrest

Replaced native Middle English lave (‘rest, remainder’) (from Old English lāf (‘remnant, remainder’)).

Another origin of rest

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*steh₂-‘to stand (up)’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*sth₂éh₁yeti‘to stand’reconstructed
  3. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*staējōreconstructed
  4. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*staēō‘to stand’reconstructed
  5. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEstō‘stand’
  6. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CErestō‘to stand firm’
  7. Old Frenchc. 842–1400rester
  8. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500resten
  9. Englishtodayrest

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Today it means

noun Relief from work or activity by sleeping; sleep.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “rest”. 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-Germanic *rastō / rest