assist

Where does the word "assist" come from? It comes from Latin sistere, passing through Latin before entering English (1400s).

Assist’s story begins in Latin: sistere meant “to stand, to place.” To stand, to place, combined with ad- (by, near). Within Latin, it grew into assistere by ancient. To stand by, to help, from ad- and sistere. It reached English by 1400s as assist. Settled as the English word for helping someone with a task. Today, assist means to help someone by sharing the work or by providing what is needed.

1. Stage 1 · Latin · ancient sistere "to stand, to place", to stand, to place, combined with ad- (by, near).
2. Stage 2 · Latin · ancient assistere "to stand by, to help", to stand by, to help, from ad- and sistere.
3. Stage 3 · English · 1400s assist "to help someone with a task", settled as the English word for helping someone with a task.