*SET-U

English word origin

Etymology of tutor

From Middle English tutour, from Old French tuteur (French tuteur), from Latin tūtor (“a watcher, protector, guardian”), from tueor (“protect”); see tuition.

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 1

Original entry ↗
noun

One who teaches another (usually called a student, learner, or tutee) in a one-on-one or small-group interaction. · A university officer responsible for students in a particular hall. · A homeroom. · One who has the charge of a child or pupil and his estate; a guardian.

verb

To instruct or teach, especially an individual or small group. · To treat with authority or sternness.

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

From Middle English tutour, from Old French tuteur (French tuteur), from Latin tūtor (“a watcher, protector, guardian”), from tueor (“protect”); see tuition.

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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      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "enm",
        "3": "tutour"
      },
      "expansion": "Middle English tutour"
    },
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "fro",
        "3": "tuteur"
      },
      "expansion": "Old French tuteur"
    },
    {
      "name": "cog",
      "args": {
        "1": "fr",
        "2": "tuteur"
      },
      "expansion": "French tuteur"
    },
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "la",
        "3": "tūtor",
        "4": "",
        "5": "a watcher, protector, guardian"
      },
      "expansion": "Latin tūtor (“a watcher, protector, guardian”)"
    }
  ],
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    ],
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      "tuteur#Old_French"
    ],
    [
      "tuteur",
      "tuteur#French"
    ],
    [
      "tūtor",
      "tutor#Latin"
    ],
    [
      "tueor",
      "tueor#Latin"
    ],
    [
      "tuition",
      "tuition"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "noun",
      "glosses": [
        "One who teaches another (usually called a student, learner, or tutee) in a one-on-one or small-group interaction.",
        "A university officer responsible for students in a particular hall.",
        "A homeroom.",
        "One who has the charge of a child or pupil and his estate; a guardian."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "UK",
        "Quebec",
        "obsolete"
      ],
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    },
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      "pos": "verb",
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        "To instruct or teach, especially an individual or small group.",
        "To treat with authority or sternness."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "transitive",
        "archaic"
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  }
}

Source etymology 2

Original entry ↗
verb

To fetch a card from one's deck.

noun

A card that allows one to search one's deck for one or more other cards.

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

Ellipsis of Demonic tutor, name of an early Magic: The Gathering card with this effect.

Inspect preserved source fields

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

{
  "templates": [
    {
      "name": "ellipsis",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "alt": "Demonic tutor"
      },
      "expansion": "Ellipsis of Demonic tutor"
    }
  ],
  "links": [],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "verb",
      "glosses": [
        "To fetch a card from one's deck."
      ],
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      "sourceRecordOrdinal": 378668
    },
    {
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      "glosses": [
        "A card that allows one to search one's deck for one or more other cards."
      ],
      "tags": [],
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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 tutor →

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-dHV0b3I