entry
participant
/pɑrˈtɪsəpənt/One who takes part in something
From Latin part (A part) + Latin cip (Take).
from Old French participant and directly
+1 more sourcefrom Old French participant and directly
+1 more sourcefrom Latin participāns, present participle of participō; see participate. Displaced native Old English dǣlnimend...
from Old French participant and directly
+1 more sourcefrom Old French participant and directly
+1 more sourcefrom Old French participant and directly
+1 more sourceWord Ancestry
from Old French participant and directly
+1 more sourcefrom Old French participant and directly
+1 more sourcefrom Latin participāns, present participle of participō; see participate. Displaced native Old English dǣlnimend...
from Old French participant and directly
+1 more sourcefrom Old French participant and directly
+1 more sourcefrom Old French participant and directly
+1 more sourcePicture a Roman official dividing up a harvest, a legal duty, or a slice of conquered territory: the crucial idea was pars, partis, a “part” or share. Latin then joined that idea to capere, “to take,” producing participare—literally, to take or share a part—and its present-participle form participans. French carried participant across the Channel, and English was using it by the late 15th century; it displaced the wonderfully transparent Old English dǣlnimend, “part-taker.” The same Latin family gives us participate and participation, while partake is a later English reconstruction of the same basic image. Remember participant as “the person who takes a part”: every meeting attendee, laboratory volunteer, and tournament entrant is carrying a tiny Roman division of the spoils.
The Story
Picture a Roman official dividing up a harvest, a legal duty, or a slice of conquered territory: the crucial idea was pars, partis, a “part” or share. Latin then joined that idea to capere, “to take,” producing participare—literally, to take or share a part—and its present-participle form participans. French carried participant across the Channel, and English was using it by the late 15th century; it displaced the wonderfully transparent Old English dǣlnimend, “part-taker.” The same Latin family gives us participate and participation, while partake is a later English reconstruction of the same basic image. Remember participant as “the person who takes a part”: every meeting attendee, laboratory volunteer, and tournament entrant is carrying a tiny Roman division of the spoils.
Kin & Kindred
From 'part'·A part, share, portion, or role
Derived Terms
English words from this root
From 'cip'·Take, seize, or receive
Derived Terms
English words from this root