ingredient

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

Ingredient’s story begins in Latin: ingredi meant “to enter into, to go in.” To enter into, to go in, from in- (in) and gradi (to walk, to step). It reached English by 1400s as ingredient. Settled as the English word for a component entering into a mixture. Today, ingredient means a component that combines with others to make a dish or mixture.

1. Stage 1 · Latin · ancient ingredi "to enter into, to go in", to enter into, to go in, from in- (in) and gradi (to walk, to step).
2. Stage 2 · English · 1400s ingredient "a component that enters into a mixture or dish", settled as the English word for a component entering into a mixture.