Etymograph

English

terrorist

Terrorist is terror + -ist (historically after French terroriste, 1794); terror comes from Middle English terrour, via French terreur from Latin terror.

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*tres-1‘to tremble (with fear)’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*troséyeti1‘to make afraid’reconstructed
  3. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*trozeō1‘to frighten’reconstructed
  4. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEterreō1‘to frighten, terrify’
  5. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEterror1‘dread, terror’
  6. Old Frenchc. 842–1400terreur1‘terror’
  7. Middle Frenchc. 1400–1600terreur1‘terror’
  8. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500terrour1‘a terror; a fright’
  9. English1500–presentterror1
  10. Englishearliest quotation 2016terrorist1

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, English terrorist
  2. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 2016, Credit Reports: “Hooooly shit! That is terrible, because (1), he is…”.

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*tres-Wiktionary, English terrorist‘to tremble (with fear)’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*troséyetiWiktionary, English terrorist‘to make afraid’reconstructed
  3. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*trozeōWiktionary, English terrorist‘to frighten’reconstructed
  4. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEterreōWiktionary, English terrorist‘to frighten, terrify’
  5. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEterrorWiktionary, English terrorist‘dread, terror’
  6. Old Frenchc. 842–1400terreurWiktionary, English terrorist‘terror’
  7. Middle Frenchc. 1400–1600terreurWiktionary, English terrorist‘terror’
  8. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500terrourWiktionary, English terrorist‘a terror; a fright’
  9. English1500–presentterrorWiktionary, English terrorist
  10. Englishearliest quotation 2016terroristWiktionary, English terrorist. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 2016, Credit Reports: “Hooooly shit! That is terrible, because (1), he is…”

first attested First used in 1794 in the Courier and Evening Gazette (as stated in Wiktionary’s etymology)

Word family

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

through Latin terreō ‘to frighten, terrify, alarm’

  • terrible ← terribilis
  • terribly ← terribli ← terrible ← terrible ← terribilis
  • terrific ← terrifique ← terrificus

5 more relatives in the full family tree

No ads, ever.

Become a founding member, $29 onceI have a code

Explore everything descended from *tres- →

No ads, ever. This is how the app stays alive.

Become a founding member, $29 onceWear this word, $32Support the app

Today it means

noun A person, group, or organization that uses violent action, or the threat of violent action, to further political goals.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “terrorist”. 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 *tres- / terrorist