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Today it means

collide

to hit something

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Where does the word "collide" come from? It comes from Latin collidere, and was adopted directly into English (1620s).

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Where does the word "collide" come from? It comes from Latin collidere, and was adopted directly into English (1620s).

Collide’s story begins in Latin: collidere meant “to strike together.” 'com-' plus 'laedere', to strike. It reached English by 1620s as collide. Particle 'colliders' date from the 1900s. Today, collide means to hit something.

  1. Stage 1 · Latin · ancient collidere "to strike together", 'com-' plus 'laedere', to strike.
  2. Stage 2 · English · 1620s collide "to strike together", particle 'colliders' date from the 1900s.

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