ascend

Where does the word "ascend" come from? It comes from Latin ascendere, and was adopted directly into English (1400s).

Ascend’s story begins in Latin: ascendere meant “to climb up.” To climb up, from ad- (up) and scandere (to climb). It reached English by 1400s as ascend. Settled as the English word for rising or climbing upward. Today, ascend means to rise or climb upward.

1. Stage 1 · Latin · ancient ascendere "to climb up", to climb up, from ad- (up) and scandere (to climb).
2. Stage 2 · English · 1400s ascend "to rise or climb upward", settled as the English word for rising or climbing upward.