rebus

Where does the word "rebus" come from? It comes from Latin rēbus, passing through French before entering English (1600s).

Rebus’s story begins in Latin: rēbus meant “by things.” 'by things', ablative plural of 'rēs', thing. By 1500s, the word had taken hold in French as rébus. Said to come from 'de rebus quae geruntur', satirical picture-riddles made by clerks of Picardy at carnival time. It reached English by 1600s as rebus. Used for heraldic puns in pictures and for word puzzles. Today, rebus means a puzzle in which pictures represent words or syllables.

1. Stage 1 · Latin · ancient rēbus "by things", 'by things', ablative plural of 'rēs', thing.
2. Stage 2 · French · 1500s rébus "picture puzzle", said to come from 'de rebus quae geruntur', satirical picture-riddles made by clerks of Picardy at carnival time.
3. Stage 3 · English · 1600s rebus "picture puzzle", used for heraldic puns in pictures and for word puzzles.