furious

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

Furious’s story begins in Latin: furiosus meant “full of rage.” From 'furia', rage. By medieval, the word had taken hold in Old French as furieus. Latin 'furere', to rage, gave the Furies their name; English also borrowed Italian 'furioso' from Ariosto's 'Orlando Furioso'. It reached English by 1300s as furious. 'fast and furious' dates from the 1700s. Today, furious means extremely angry.

1. Stage 1 · Latin · ancient furiosus "full of rage", from 'furia', rage.
2. Stage 2 · Old French · medieval furieus "furious", Latin 'furere', to rage, gave the Furies their name; English also borrowed Italian 'furioso' from Ariosto's 'Orlando Furioso'.
3. Stage 3 · English · 1300s furious "raging", 'fast and furious' dates from the 1700s.