Speed
nounThe rate at which someone or something moves or operates.
How to spell speed
5 letters · 1 syllable
How to pronounce speed
What does speed mean?
- nounThe rate at which someone or something moves or operates.
- verbTo move or travel quickly, often faster than is allowed.
Speed in a sentence
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noun
The train travels at a remarkable speed between the two cities.
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verb
Drivers who speed through the village face heavy fines.
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noun
The technician measured the download speed of the new connection.
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verb
The courier had to speed across town to deliver the parcel on time.
Where does speed come from?
Language of origin: Germanic
Speed comes from the Old English noun 'sped', which originally meant 'success', 'prosperity', or 'good fortune', and only secondarily 'swiftness'. It traces back to the Proto-Germanic root *spodiz and the verb *spowan, meaning 'to prosper' or 'to succeed', so the earliest idea was getting on well rather than moving fast. That older sense survives fossilised in the old blessing 'God speed', which wished a traveller success rather than haste. Over the medieval period the meaning shifted toward the rate of motion we mean today, since prospering and getting somewhere quickly were closely linked. The spelling is reassuringly phonetic, with the double 'e' giving the long vowel, which is why most adults find it an easy word to write.
How the word is built
- speed (from Old English sped: success, swiftness); a simple root noun and verb with no affixes
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