recht

Forms

recht (strong nominative masculine singular rechter, comparative rechter, superlative am rechtesten or (very rare) am rechtsten)^[1]

Etymology

It is inherited from Middle High German reht, inherited from Old High German reht, inherited from Proto-West Germanic *reht (“right, straight”), inherited from Proto-Germanic *rehtaz (“right, straight”).^[2][1][3] The same adjective is Gothic 𐍂𐌰𐌹𐌷𐍄𐍃 (raihts), Old Norse réttr, Old English riht (modern English right), Old Frisian riucht, Old Saxon reht and Dutch recht.^[2][3]

Like Latin rēctus (“straight, right”) and Ancient Greek ὀρεκτός (orektós, “stretched out”), it was a participle with the suffix Proto-Indo-European *-tós of Proto-Indo-European *h₃reǵ- (“to straighten, direct”), the root of regō (“to direct, rule”) and ὀρέγω (orégō, “to stretch out”).^[2][3][4] The same root gives rechnen, recken, Rechen and, through Latin, regieren.^[2][5]

Earliest recorded meaning

Old High German reht is found in glosses from about 765 and then in many texts, from Isidor and the Murbacher Hymnen to Otfrid and Notker.^[6][7] It meant “right, just, correct, straight, simple, good, true”.^[7][4]

Semantic evolution

The first meaning was “straight”, which survives in aufrecht, senkrecht, waagerecht and in rechter Winkel and Rechteck (1757, after Medieval Latin rectangulum).^[5][8][4] From “straight” came “correct” and “lawful, morally good”.^[5][8]

The sense “right as opposed to left” grew in late Middle High German out of “correct”, since using the right hand was felt to be proper; it displaced the older Old High German zeso, Middle High German zese.^[4][8][5] Hence die Rechte “the right hand” (16th century) and rechte Hand “indispensable helper” (17th century, earlier rechter Arm), and the adverb rechts, a fossilised genitive.^[4][5] In politics die Rechte followed French la droite, after the seating of conservative parties in the French chamber;^[4][8] Paul's first German record is 1832, in Heine.^[4][8] As an intensifier (recht gut “quite good”) the word goes back to its adverbial use “in the right way”.^[8]

Timeline

• c. 765 – Old High German reht appears in glosses.^[6]
• 9th century – the genitive rehtes “in the right way” is used as an adverb.^[4]
• Late Middle High German – reht begins to mean “right-hand”, replacing zese.^[4][8]
• 16th century – rechts “on the right” and die Rechte “the right hand” are recorded.^[4]
• 1757 – Rechteck is recorded.^[8]
• 1832 – die Rechte is used of a political party.^[8]

Meanings

Adjective

1. Suitable, right for a purpose: im rechten Moment, Du kommst gerade recht.^[9][1]
2. Correct, as it should be: auf dem rechten Weg sein, Ganz recht!^[9][1]
3. Just, morally right: Es war nicht recht von dir, ihn anzulügen. The pair recht und billig means “only fair”.^[9][1]
4. Agreeable to someone: Ist es dir recht, wenn ich später komme?^[9]
5. Real, proper: ein rechter Dummkopf; with a negative, “not really”: keine rechte Lust haben.^[9][1]
6. (attributive) right, on the right-hand side: der rechte Arm, das rechte Ufer.^[9][1]
7. (attributive) Of fabric, on the outer side: die rechte Seite des Stoffs.^[9]
8. (politics) Belonging to the political right: rechte Parteien.^[9][10]
9. (geometry) Of an angle, measuring 90 degrees: ein rechter Winkel.^[9][1]

Adverb

1. Quite, fairly, rather: Das Wetter war recht angenehm.^[9][1]

Word family

• rechts
• Rechte
• Rechteck
• aufrecht
• senkrecht
• waagerecht
• gerecht
• richtig
• richten
• rechtschaffen
• Rechtschreibung
• rechtgläubig

Related words

• Recht
• rechnen
• recken
• Rechen
• rank
• English right

Usage notes

Was dem einen recht ist, ist dem anderen billig means that what is allowed to one must be allowed to the other;^[9][8] alles, was recht ist concedes a point.^[9][8] Recht und schlecht “as well as one can” goes back to Luther's Bible.^[8]

References

1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d Kluge, Friedrich; Seebold, Elmar (2011), Etymologisches Wörterbuch der deutschen Sprache, 25th ed., Berlin / Boston: De Gruyter, p. 751
3. ^ a b c Kroonen, Guus (2013), Etymological Dictionary of Proto-Germanic, Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series 11, Leiden / Boston: Brill
4. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Pfeifer, Wolfgang, et al. (1993), Etymologisches Wörterbuch des Deutschen, 2nd ed., Berlin: Akademie-Verlag; digital revised version in the DWDS, dwds.de
5. ^ a b c d e Duden. Das Herkunftswörterbuch: Etymologie der deutschen Sprache (2020), 6th ed., Duden vol. 7, Berlin: Dudenverlag, p. 678
6. ^ a b Köbler, Gerhard (2014), Althochdeutsches Wörterbuch, 6th ed., online, koeblergerhard.de/wikiling
7. ^ a b Schützeichel, Rudolf (2012), Althochdeutsches Wörterbuch, 7th ed., Berlin / Boston: De Gruyter, p. 256
8. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l Paul, Hermann (2002), Deutsches Wörterbuch: Bedeutungsgeschichte und Aufbau unseres Wortschatzes, 10th ed., ed. Helmut Henne, Heidrun Kämper and Georg Objartel, Tübingen: Niemeyer
9. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l Duden. Das große Wörterbuch der deutschen Sprache in zehn Bänden (1999), 3rd ed., Mannheim: Dudenverlag
10. ^ Wiktionary, das freie Wörterbuch (German Wiktionary), de.wiktionary.org