Etymograph

English

roadworker

From road + worker.

A compound of road + worker

Proto-Indo-European *reydʰ- ‘to ride’

Proto-Germanic *raidō ‘a ride’

Proto-West Germanic *raidu ‘riding’

Old English rād ‘riding’

Middle English rode ‘ride’

English road

Middle English worchere ‘one who works’

English worker

Today it means

noun A worker who carries out road construction or maintenance.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “roadworker”. 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 / roadworker