English
siege
Siege comes from Old French sege, from Latin sēdicŭlum ‘small seat’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *sed- ‘to sit’.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*sed-1‘to sit’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*sed-éh₁-ye-ti1reconstructed
- Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*sedēō1‘to sit, to be sitting, to be seated’reconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEsedeō2‘to sit’
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEsēdēs3‘seat’
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEsēdicŭlum3‘small seat’
- Vulgar Latinc. 100–700 CE*sēdicum3reconstructed
- Old Frenchc. 842–1400sege3
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500sege3‘a group of assailants in a siege’
- Englishearliest quotation 1485siege3
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor
- 1 Wiktionary, Latin sedeo
- 2 Wiktionary, Latin sedes
- 3 Wiktionary, English siege
- Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1485, Sir Thomas Malory, ij: “Now Merlyn said kyng Arthur / goo thow and…”.
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*sed-Wiktionary, Latin sedeo‘to sit’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*sed-éh₁-ye-tiWiktionary, Latin sedeoreconstructed
- Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*sedēōWiktionary, Latin sedeo‘to sit, to be sitting, to be seated’reconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEsedeōWiktionary, Latin sedes‘to sit’
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEsēdēsWiktionary, English siege‘seat’
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEsēdicŭlumWiktionary, English siege‘small seat’
- Vulgar Latinc. 100–700 CE*sēdicumWiktionary, English siegereconstructed
- Old Frenchc. 842–1400segeWiktionary, English siege
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500segeWiktionary, English siege‘a group of assailants in a siege’
- Englishearliest quotation 1485siegeWiktionary, English siege. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1485, Sir Thomas Malory, ij: “Now Merlyn said kyng Arthur / goo thow and…”
The story
The military sense of the term is derived from the notion of an army "sitting down" in front of its target.
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *sed- ‘to sit’
set, sell, seat, method, chair, sitting, sit, settle, nest, possess, niche, saddle, exodus, nye, subsidy, beset, prasad, cathode, soot, setter, anode, chaise, sate, ersatz, salo, nidal, polyhedron, nias, 81 more
through Proto-Italic *sedēō ‘to sit, to be sitting, to be seated’
possession, obsession, assessor, presidente, assize, 23 more
through Latin sedeō ‘to sit’
president, size, session, resident, assess, sediment, reside, residual, residue, sedentary, insidious, sedative, possessive, dissident, obsess, sedate, presidio, seance, presidium, sessile, 27 more
through Latin sēdēs ‘seat’
Today it means
noun A prolonged military assault or a blockade of a city or fortress with the intent of conquering by force or attrition.
Sources
Sources: Wiktionary, “siege”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entries for Latin sedeo, Latin sedes. 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 *sed- / siege