Property
/ˈprɒp.ər.ti/noun
Something owned by a person or entity; also a characteristic or attribute of something.
Did you know?Property ultimately comes from a Latin word tied to “one’s own” and “one’s particular nature,” which is why the same root also lives in words like appropriate and proper.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*per-
“to produce, procure; to get through to the end”
Latin
Latin
proprius
“one’s own, special, particular”
Late Latin
Latin
proprietas
“a special quality; ownership, one’s own possession”
Old French
Old French
proprieté
“ownership; a thing owned; special quality”
Middle English
English
propriete / property
“ownership; a thing belonging to someone”
Modern English
English
property
“something owned; a characteristic or attribute”
Explore more surprising origins