English
trepidation
Trepidation comes from Latin trepidātiō ‘agitation, confusion, trepidation’, from trepidus ‘nervous’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *trep- ‘to tremble’.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*trep-1‘to tremble’reconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEtrepidus2‘nervous’
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEtrepidō3‘be agitated’
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEtrepidātiō3‘agitation, confusion, trepidation’
- Englishearliest quotation 1915trepidation3
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor
- 1 Wiktionary, Latin trepidus
- 2 Wiktionary, Latin trepido
- 3 Wiktionary, English trepidation
- Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1915, Edgar Jepson, The Reluctant Duke: “She reached it soon after half-past two. She found…”.
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*trep-Wiktionary, Latin trepidus‘to tremble’reconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEtrepidusWiktionary, Latin trepido‘nervous’
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEtrepidōWiktionary, English trepidation‘be agitated’
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEtrepidātiōWiktionary, English trepidation‘agitation, confusion, trepidation’
- Englishearliest quotation 1915trepidationWiktionary, English trepidation. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1915, Edgar Jepson, The Reluctant Duke: “She reached it soon after half-past two. She found…”
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *trep- ‘to tremble’
trophy, thrive, trope, tropic, troubadour, turpitude, contrive, 28 more
through Latin trepidus ‘nervous’
Today it means
noun Anxiety over the uncertain future or possible ill-occurrence.
Sources
Sources: Wiktionary, “trepidation”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entries for Latin trepidus, Latin trepido. 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 *trep- / trepidation