inquire

Where does the word "inquire" come from? It comes from Latin inquirere, and was adopted directly into English (1300s).

Inquire’s story begins in Latin: inquirere meant “to seek into, to investigate.” To seek into, to investigate, from in- (into) and quaerere (to seek). It reached English by 1300s as inquire. Settled as the English word for asking for information. Today, inquire means to ask for information, or to investigate something formally.

1. Stage 1 · Latin · ancient inquirere "to seek into, to investigate", to seek into, to investigate, from in- (into) and quaerere (to seek).
2. Stage 2 · English · 1300s inquire "to ask for information about something", settled as the English word for asking for information.