account

Where does the word "account" come from? It comes from Latin computare, passing through Old French before entering English (1300s).

Account’s story begins in Latin: computare meant “to reckon.” 'com-' plus 'putare', to reckon, the root of 'compute'. By medieval, the word had taken hold in Old French as aconter. 'a-' plus 'conter', to count. It reached English by 1300s as account. Bank 'accounts' date from the 1300s too. Today, account means a record of money; a report.

1. Stage 1 · Latin · ancient computare "to reckon", 'com-' plus 'putare', to reckon, the root of 'compute'.
2. Stage 2 · Old French · medieval aconter "to count", 'a-' plus 'conter', to count.
3. Stage 3 · English · 1300s account "reckoning", bank 'accounts' date from the 1300s too.