Etymologically
Log in

executa

History Permalink

Etymology and origin of the Romanian word executa

Confidence
Established
Formation
Borrowing
First attested
1825 the variant executarisi, in a document edited by Iorga More words from the 19th century
Borrowed from
French exécuter
Ultimate origin
Latin sequor

Forms

executa (first-person singular present execut, third-person singular present execută, past participle executat), first conjugation[1] The old spelling esecuta appears in Heliade Rădulescu: ficatul „foarte rar îşi esecută foncțiile” “[the liver] however very rarely performs its functions”.[2][3] The present also had a regional form executez.[3]

Etymology

It is borrowed from French exécuter.[4][3][5][6][1] According to DELR, French formed the verb on exécution, borrowed from Latin exsecūtiō, and on exsecūtus, the past participle of exsequor (“to follow to the end, carry out”), from sequor (“to follow”).[4] The computing sense “to run (a program)” follows English execute.[4]

The first record is the variant executarisi;[4] DELR also records the old variants esecuta and ezecuta.[4] The noun execuție is older, recorded from 1736.[4]

Earliest recorded meaning

DELR's first record is the variant executarisi, in a document of 1825 published by Iorga; the form executa follows in 1832.[4] MDA2 quotes it first from Șincai's Hronic, which it cites in the edition of 1853.[3] The first sense was “to carry out” an order or a decision.[4][2]

Semantic evolution

In the 19th century the verb was used of carrying out works, plans and functions, and Pontbriant (1862) gives it with the senses “accomplish”, “play a piece of music” and “put to death by order of the courts”.[2][7] Early dictionaries add the legal sense of forcing a debtor to pay by selling his goods.[8][9] The reflexive a se executa “to comply, do as one is told” and the jocular “to pay up” are recorded by DLRLC and DLRM.[10][11] MDA2 extends the sense “to put to death” to “to kill” in general.[3] In criminal slang it means “to rob”.[12]

Timeline

  • 1825 – the variant executarisi.[4]
  • 1830 – the adjective executiv.[4]
  • 1832 – the form executa.[4]
  • 1855 – executabil “that can be carried out”.[4]
  • 1862 – executant in Pontbriant's dictionary.[4]

Meanings

Verb

  1. To make, manufacture or carry out (a work, an object); to perform.[5][3]
  2. (reflexive) To do what one has been told; to comply.[5][3]
  3. To perform (gymnastic exercises, ballet figures); to play (a piece of music).[5][3]
  4. (law) To compel a debtor to pay; to carry out a court decision or an act of authority.[5][3]
  5. To execute, put (a condemned person) to death.[5][3][1]
  6. (computing) To run an instruction or a program.[4]

Word family

  • executabil
  • executor
  • executant

References

  1. ^ a b c Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c Academia Română (1965–2010), Dicționarul limbii române (DLR), serie nouă, tom I–XIX, București: Editura Academiei Române, p. s.v. executa
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Academia Română, Institutul de Lingvistică „Iorgu Iordan – Al. Rosetti” (2010), Micul dicționar academic, 2nd ed., 4 vols., București: Univers Enciclopedic Gold, p. 1, 854
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n Academia Română, Institutul de Lingvistică „Iorgu Iordan – Al. Rosetti” (2011–), Dicționarul etimologic al limbii române (DELR), vol. I: A–B (2011), vol. II: C (2015–2018), București: Editura Academiei Române; continued online at delr.lingv.ro, p. s.v. executa
  5. ^ a b c d e f DEX (2009), Dicționarul explicativ al limbii române [Explanatory dictionary of the Romanian language], Bucharest: Editura Univers Enciclopedic, p. 369
  6. ^ Marcu, Florin; Maneca, Constant (1986), Dicționar de neologisme, 3rd ed., București: Editura Academiei Republicii Socialiste România, p. s.v. executa
  7. ^ Pontbriant, Raoul de (1862), Dictiunaru romano-francesu, Bucuresci: A. Ulrich / Göttingen: Dieterich, p. 251
  8. ^ Șăineanu, Lazăr (1929), Dicționar universal al limbei române, 6th ed., Craiova: Scrisul Românesc, p. 237
  9. ^ Candrea, I.-A.; Adamescu, Gh. (1926–1931), Dicționarul enciclopedic ilustrat „Cartea Românească”, București: Cartea Românească, p. s.v. executa
  10. ^ Macrea, Dimitrie; Petrovici, Emil (coord.) (1955–1957), Dicționarul limbii romîne literare contemporane, 4 vols., București: Editura Academiei Republicii Populare Romîne, p. 2, 233
  11. ^ Academia Republicii Populare Romîne (1958), Dicționarul limbii romîne moderne, București: Editura Academiei Republicii Populare Romîne, p. s.v. executa
  12. ^ Volceanov, George (2007), Dicționar de argou al limbii române, București: Niculescu, p. s.v. executa

Related etymologies

  • cap · also from French
  • dura · also from French
  • pur · also from French
  • pană · also from French
  • pat · also from French
  • masă · also from French
  • lac · also from French
  • primar · also from French
Cite this entry

“Executa.” Etymologically, 12 Nov. 2026, etymologically.com/ro/executa. Accessed 12 Nov. 2026.

Last edited on . ·