English
vexed
Vexed comes from Old French vexer, from Latin vexō ‘to shake or jolt violently’, and perhaps ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *weǵʰ- ‘to bring’.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*weǵʰ-1‘to bring’uncertain
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEvexō2‘to shake or jolt violently’
- Old Frenchc. 842–1400vexer2
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500vexen2‘to afflict’
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500vexed2
- Englishearliest quotation 1901vexed2
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor
- 1 Wiktionary, Latin vexo
- 2 Wiktionary, English vexed
- Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1901, H. Watkins-Pitchford, Rinderpest: “The question, however, as to whether rinderpest bile is…”.
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*weǵʰ-Wiktionary, Latin vexo‘to bring’uncertain
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEvexōWiktionary, English vexed‘to shake or jolt violently’
- Old Frenchc. 842–1400vexerWiktionary, English vexed
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500vexenWiktionary, English vexed‘to afflict’
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500vexedWiktionary, English vexed
- Englishearliest quotation 1901vexedWiktionary, English vexed. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1901, H. Watkins-Pitchford, Rinderpest: “The question, however, as to whether rinderpest bile is…”
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *weǵʰ- ‘to bring’
way, always, via, vehicle, wave, reveal, halfway, weigh, wagon, wee, vector, vogue, vein, wedge, veil, headway, wag, wonky, eunuch, venous, wey, waw, wain, invective, vena, velar, 39 more
through Middle English vexen ‘to afflict’
Today it means
adj annoyed, irritated or distressed
Sources
Sources: Wiktionary, “vexed”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entry for Latin vexo. 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 *weǵʰ- / vexed