*SET-U

English word origin

Etymology of roil

Origin uncertain. Possibly from French or Middle French rouiller (“to rust, make muddy”), from Old French rouil (“mud, rust”), from Vulgar Latin *robicula, from Latin robigo (“rust, blight”)

1 source sectionExtended source reportWiktionary original ↗
In this entry · 1 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.

Unnumbered source etymology

Original entry ↗
verb

To render turbid by stirring up the dregs or sediment of. · To annoy; to make angry; to throw into discord. · To bubble, seethe. · To romp or tumble.

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

Origin uncertain. Possibly from French or Middle French rouiller (“to rust, make muddy”), from Old French rouil (“mud, rust”), from Vulgar Latin *robicula, from Latin robigo (“rust, blight”)

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.

{
  "templates": [
    {
      "name": "unc",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "nocap": "1"
      },
      "expansion": "uncertain"
    },
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "fr",
        "3": "-"
      },
      "expansion": "French"
    },
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "frm",
        "3": "rouiller",
        "4": "",
        "5": "to rust, make muddy"
      },
      "expansion": "Middle French rouiller (“to rust, make muddy”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "fro",
        "3": "rouil",
        "4": "",
        "5": "mud, rust"
      },
      "expansion": "Old French rouil (“mud, rust”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "la-vul",
        "3": "*robicula"
      },
      "expansion": "Vulgar Latin *robicula"
    },
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "la",
        "3": "robigo",
        "4": "",
        "5": "rust, blight"
      },
      "expansion": "Latin robigo (“rust, blight”)"
    }
  ],
  "links": [
    [
      "rouiller",
      "rouiller#Middle_French"
    ],
    [
      "rouil",
      "rouil#Old_French"
    ],
    [
      "*robicula",
      "Reconstruction:Latin/robicula"
    ],
    [
      "robigo",
      "robigo#Latin"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "verb",
      "glosses": [
        "To render turbid by stirring up the dregs or sediment of.",
        "To annoy; to make angry; to throw into discord.",
        "To bubble, seethe.",
        "To romp or tumble."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "transitive",
        "intransitive"
      ],
      "recordId": "2476eba5bc0382340a0cd43847cbc6206568448faafb8817f4e66e7d52d4d42b",
      "rawRecordSha256": "0f83c5f0abe039517f2f251b5e82e9c452609f2eeb0de572367770f9fea69ff9",
      "sourceRecordOrdinal": 232857
    }
  ],
  "omittedAuxiliaryFields": {
    "templates": 0,
    "links": 0,
    "references": 0,
    "descendants": 0,
    "lexicalRecords": 0,
    "lexicalSenses": 0,
    "glosses": 0
  }
}

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 roil →

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-cm9pbA