cavalier

Where does the word "cavalier" come from? It comes from Late Latin caballus, passing through Italian before entering English (1580s).

Cavalier’s story begins in Late Latin: caballus meant “a horse.” A horse, especially a workhorse. By medieval, the word had taken hold in Italian as cavaliere. A horseman, a knight, from cavallo (horse, from caballus). It reached English by 1580s as cavalier. Settled as the English word for a knightly gentleman, later meaning offhand or dismissive. Today, cavalier means showing a careless or dismissive attitude, or historically, a mounted knight or gentleman.

1. Stage 1 · Late Latin · ancient caballus "a horse", a horse, especially a workhorse.
2. Stage 2 · Italian · medieval cavaliere "a horseman, a knight", a horseman, a knight, from cavallo (horse, from caballus).
3. Stage 3 · English · 1580s cavalier "a knightly gentleman, or someone offhand and dismissive", settled as the English word for a knightly gentleman, later meaning offhand or dismissive.