satisfy (English)

Where does "satisfy" come from?

The English verb 'satisfy' comes from Middle English 'satisfyen'[1], borrowed from the Old French verb 'satisfiier'[1]. This in turn traces to Latin 'satisfacere'[1], a compound formed from 'satis', meaning 'enough' or 'sufficient', and 'faciō', meaning 'to make' or 'to do'[1][2]. The first element descends from Proto-Indo-European '*sh₂tis' ('satiation') and ultimately the root '*seh₂-', meaning 'to satiate'[3]. The second element derives via Proto-Italic '*fakjō' from Proto-Indo-European '*dʰh₁k-yé-ti', an extension of the root '*dʰeh₁-', meaning 'to put' or 'place'[4][5].

Open questions

The earliest ancestral stages of both components, including Proto-Indo-European roots like '*seh₂-' and '*dʰeh₁-', are unattested theoretical reconstructions. [3] [4] [5]

Full etymology tree

satisfy (English), 'To be enough (for)'
- inherited satisfyen (Middle English)
  - borrowed satisfier (Old French), 'to satisfy'
    - derived satisfacere (Latin), 'present active infinitive of satisfaciō'
      - compound satis (Latin), 'adequate, enough, plenty, satisfactory, sufficient'
        inherited *sh₂tis (Proto-Indo-European)
        derived *seh₂- (Proto-Indo-European), 'to satiate, satisfy'
      - compound facio (Latin), 'to do (particularly as a specific instance or occasion of doing)'
        inherited *fakjō (Proto-Italic), 'to make'
        inherited *θakjō (Proto-Italic)
        inherited *dʰh₁k-yé-ti (Proto-Indo-European)
        derived *dʰeh₁- (Proto-Indo-European), 'to do'

Ancestors

*seh₂- (Proto-Indo-European)
satisfacio (Latin)

Sources

Updated September 2026

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Etymology data from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0 · About Miraris