let (French)
Where does "let" come from?
The word 'let' originated from the Proto-Indo-European root *leh₁d-, meaning 'to be tired' or 'to leave behind.' It evolved through Proto-Germanic and Old English as a term for allowing or renting, eventually entering French as a borrowed loanword specifically used to describe a point in sports where a service is replayed.
Full etymology tree
- let (French), 'indicates a let on service'
- borrowed let (English), 'To allow to, not to prevent (+ infinitive, but usually without to).'
- inherited leten (Middle English), 'to let'
- inherited lǣtan (Old English), 'to let, allow'
- inherited *lātan (Proto-West Germanic), 'to let, to allow'
- inherited *lētaną (Proto-Germanic), 'to let, to allow'
- inherited *leh₁d- (Proto-Indo-European), 'to be tired'
- inherited *lētaną (Proto-Germanic), 'to let, to allow'
- inherited *lātan (Proto-West Germanic), 'to let, to allow'
- inherited lǣtan (Old English), 'to let, allow'
- inherited leten (Middle English), 'to let'
- borrowed let (English), 'To allow to, not to prevent (+ infinitive, but usually without to).'
Ancestors
- let (English)
Updated May 2026
Etymology data from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0 · About Miraris