Etymologically
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reputable

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Pronunciation

  • /ˈɹɛpjʊtəbəl/, /ˈɹɛpjətəbəl/[1]

Etymology

It is formed from English repute + -able,[2][3][4][5] from the verb according to the OED, from the noun according to Etymonline.[2][3] The OED compares Medieval Latin reputabilis (“of good repute”), recorded about 1250 in a British source, and Middle French reputable (“celebrated, famous”), of the 15th century;[2] the Shorter Oxford and the “Oxford Dictionary of English” derive the English word from these.[6][7] The verb repute is from Middle English reputen, from Old French reputer and directly from Latin reputō (“to reckon up, think over”),[3][2] formed from re- and putō (“to reckon, think”).[3][2]

Earliest recorded meaning

Capable of being taken into account, a sense now obsolete: 1611, in John Speed's History of Great Britaine.[2][3][6]

Semantic evolution

The first sense, "that may be taken into account", is recorded only in the early 17th century.[2][6] The current meaning, "of good repute, respectable", was first used of acts, circumstances and kinds of work (1659, in Richard Baxter),[2][4] which Etymonline dates to the 1670s as "consistent with a good reputation",[3] and then of people, firms and institutions, from 1671 in the OED and the 1690s in Etymonline.[2][3] Johnson (1755) defined it as "honourable; not infamous".[8] Merriam-Webster and Collins also record its use of words and speech that are accepted as good usage.[4][9]

Timeline

  • 1611 – capable of being taken into account (obsolete).[2]
  • 1659 – of an act or kind of work: respectable, creditable.[2][4]
  • 1671 – of a person or institution: having a good reputation.[2]

Meanings

Adjective

  1. Having a good reputation; trustworthy, respectable: Always buy a used car from a reputable dealer.[9][4][2]
  2. Of words or usage: accepted by good writers and speakers; standard.[9][4]
  3. (obsolete, 1611) Capable of being taken into account.[2][6]

Word family

  • reputability
  • reputably
  • disreputable
  • nonreputable
  • unreputable

References

  1. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n Oxford English Dictionary Online (accessed March 2026), Oxford: Oxford University Press
  3. ^ a b c d e f g Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  4. ^ a b c d e f Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  5. ^ Dictionary.com Unabridged (2016), based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, New York: Random House
  6. ^ a b c d Shorter Oxford English Dictionary on Historical Principles (2002), 5th ed., ed. William R. Trumble and Angus Stevenson, Oxford: Oxford University Press
  7. ^ Stevenson, Angus, ed. (2010), Oxford Dictionary of English, 3rd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
  8. ^ Johnson, Samuel (1755), A Dictionary of the English Language, London; 4th ed. 1773; Johnson's Dictionary Online, ed. Beth Rapp Young et al.
  9. ^ a b c Collins English Dictionary (2023), Glasgow: HarperCollins