'Pay' comes from Latin 'pacare' (to pacify) — payment was originally restoring peace between debtor and creditor.
Definition
To give money in exchange for goods or services; to compensate or settle a debt.
The Full Story
Old Frenchc. 1200 CEwell-attested
From OldFrench "paier" (to pay, to appease), from Latin "pācāre" (to pacify, to make peaceful), from "pāx" (peace, from PIE *paḱ-, to fasten, to fix, and by extension to agree upon, to make a covenant). The semantic journey from "make peace" to "pay money" is remarkable: settling a debt was understood as restoring peace between debtor and creditor, pacifying an obligation. The PIEroot *paḱ- produced
Did you know?
English 'pay' and 'peace' are etymological siblings — both descend from Latin 'pāx.' To pay someone was originally to pacify them, to restore thepeace that a debt had disturbed. Even today, we speak of 'settling' a debt, as though financial obligation were a kind
13th century. Nautical "pay" (to waterproof seams) is a different word entirely, from Old French "peier" from Latin "picāre" (to coat with pitch). The divergence of "pay" and "peace" from the same root is one of etymology's most elegant surprises. Key roots: pāx (Latin: "peace, compact, agreement"), *peh₂ḱ- (Proto-Indo-European: "to fasten, fix").