*SET-U

English word origin

Etymology of prest

From Middle English prest, from Old French prest, deverbal from prester.

2 source sectionsExtended source reportWiktionary original ↗
In this entry · 2 source sections

The source etymologies

Wiktionary via Kaikki / Wiktextract

The source reports below are imported and unreviewed by *SET-U. Separate numbered origins and differing source variants are preserved; agreement within this extraction is not independent corroboration.

Source etymology 2

Original entry ↗
noun

A payment of wages in advance · A loan or advance (of money) · A tax or duty · A sum of money paid to a soldier or sailor upon enlistment

Selected source glosses provide context, not a complete modern definition inventory

From Middle English prest, from Old French prest, deverbal from prester.

Relationships mentioned by the source

These are extracted mentions, not a timeline or a verified sequence of immediate parents.

  • Inherited-form mentionprestenm
  • Derivation mentionprestfro

This page abbreviates 1 auxiliary source items. The etymology narrative is not shortened. Omission counts are available in the audit fields below; consult the original for complete auxiliary material.

Inspect preserved source fields

Raw extraction fields are retained for auditing. Their order does not establish ancestry.

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    {
      "name": "inh",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "enm",
        "3": "prest"
      },
      "expansion": "Middle English prest"
    },
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "fro",
        "3": "prest",
        "id": "deverbal"
      },
      "expansion": "Old French prest"
    },
    {
      "name": "deverbal",
      "args": {
        "1": "fro",
        "2": "prester",
        "nocat": "1",
        "nocap": "1"
      },
      "expansion": "deverbal from prester"
    }
  ],
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      "prester#Old_French"
    ]
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  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
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      "glosses": [
        "A payment of wages in advance",
        "A loan or advance (of money)",
        "A tax or duty",
        "A sum of money paid to a soldier or sailor upon enlistment"
      ],
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        "rare",
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Source etymology 3

Original entry ↗
adj

Ready; prompt; prepared. · Neat; tidy; proper. · Quick, brisk.

verb

To give as a loan; to lend.

Selected source glosses provide context, not a complete modern definition inventory

From Middle English prest, borrowed from Old French prester, from Latin praesto, praestare.

Relationships mentioned by the source

These are extracted mentions, not a timeline or a verified sequence of immediate parents.

Inspect preserved source fields

Raw extraction fields are retained for auditing. Their order does not establish ancestry.

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    {
      "name": "inh",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
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        "3": "prest"
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    },
    {
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        "1": "en",
        "2": "fro",
        "3": "prester"
      },
      "expansion": "Old French prester"
    },
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "la",
        "3": "praesto",
        "4": "praesto, praestare"
      },
      "expansion": "Latin praesto, praestare"
    }
  ],
  "links": [
    [
      "prest",
      "prest#Middle_English"
    ],
    [
      "prester",
      "prester#Old_French"
    ],
    [
      "praesto, praestare",
      "praesto#Latin"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
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      "pos": "adj",
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        "Ready; prompt; prepared.",
        "Neat; tidy; proper.",
        "Quick, brisk."
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      "pos": "verb",
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        "To give as a loan; to lend."
      ],
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Where this record stops

This page does not supply an independently verified sound-change sequence, first-use manuscript or complete family tree unless a cited analysis explicitly establishes one. Missing detail here is a limit of this record—not a claim that humanity knows nothing more.

An older meaning does not determine what a word must mean today. Follow the sources, preserve disagreements, and keep ancestry separate from interpretation.

Contribute located evidence for prest →

Source and snapshot

Imported from Wiktionary contributors; extracted by Tatu Ylonen / Wiktextract / Kaikki.org. Selected fields are reformatted and grouped; wording, source identity and etymology sections are retained. CC-BY-SA-4.0 applies to the imported source material.

Dump: 2026-10-01 · Extracted: 2026-10-30. These are snapshot dates, not the word’s first attestation or the page’s revision date.

Source entry and bibliography ↗Wiktionary revision history ↗Acquisition and rights ledger
Machine-source provenance
Source SHA-256
5ff2c072f8099f2d2ce484bd6957bf179f046d2ad37bc36555edf8bb84cb5291
Import run
73216b9a9b78ed3830994bf853103716f5a4dc57099e371e9f8fdc468facca26
Permanent entry ID
w-cHJlc3Q