DictionaryRoot: agere
Latin
agere
drive, set in motion; do
Forms
- ag-
- act- — Latin stem of the form meaning ‘done.’
- -ig- — Used in some Latin compounds.
Origin
Reconstructed Proto-Indo-European *ag-, ‘drive; lead.’
Note
A root for driving things forward also came to describe performing an action.
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noun
agency
AY-jun-see/ˈeɪdʒənsi/
An organization charged with providing a particular service.
Etymology
The root meaning “do” underlies agency’s earlier sense of active operation. The word later named an establishment doing business for another, connecting action with an organization that provides a service.
Related word entries
- actPlaying a role
- actAction and behavior
- actionDoing something
- actionLegal proceedings
- actionMechanical operation
- actor
- agency
- agenda
- agent
- castigate
- cogent
- essayShort composition
- essayAttempt
- exactDemand and obtain
- exactCompletely accurate
- exaction
- exactitude
- exigentDemanding
- exigentUrgent
- fumigation
- litigant
- litigate
- litigation
- litigator
- litigious
- mitigate
- mitigation
- prodigal
- reactionary
- retroactive
- transact
- transaction