Word of the Day

agēns

Agēns

Latin (from agere: to do, to drive)

English pronunciation/ˈeɪdʒənt/Latin pronunciation/ˈa.ɡeːns/
An agent is someone who acts — from the Latin agere, 'to do.' The same root gives us agile, agitate, agenda, and agency. Everything is about action.

Agent comes from the Latin agēns (doing, acting), the present participle of agere (to do, to drive, to lead). The word entered English in the late fifteenth century from Medieval Latin agēns, initially meaning 'one who acts on behalf of another.' The legal, commercial, and diplomatic meanings appeared almost simultaneously — an agent was anyone authorized to act in someone else's name.

4 stops · from Rome, Italy to Global (philosophical)

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