A- (3) prefix meaning "not," from Gk a-, an- "not," from pie base *ne "not" (see un-)

rodent --- 1835, from Mod.L. rodentia, the order name, from L. rodentem (nom. rodens), prp. of rodere "to gnaw, eat away," from PIE base *red- "to scrape, scratch, gnaw" (cf. Skt. radati "scrapes, gnaws," radanah "tooth;" L. radere "to scrape;" Welsh rhathu "scrape, polish"). Uncertain connection to O.E. rætt (see rat).

rodeo --- 1914 as public entertainment show of horse-riding skill, from earlier meaning "cattle round-up" (1834), from Sp., "pen for cattle at a fair or market," lit. "a going round," from rodear "go round, surround," related to rodare "revolve, roll," from L. rotare "go around" (see rotate).

Roderick --- masc. proper name, from O.H.G. Hroderich, lit. "ruling in fame," from hruod- "fame, glory" + P.Gmc. *rikja "rule." It. and Sp. Rodrigo, Rus. Rurik are from Ger.

rodomontade --- 1612, "vain boasting like that of Rodomonte," character in Ariosto's "Orlando Furioso" (earlier rodomontado, 1598). The name means lit. "one who rolls (away) the mountain" in dial. It.

roe (1) --- fish eggs, c.1400, corresponding to O.N. hrogn, Flem. rog, M.L.G. and M.Du. roge, O.H.G. rogo "roe," from P.Gmc. *khrugna, corresponding to PIE *qreq- "spawn" (cf. Lith. kurkle, Rus. krjak "spawn of frogs"). Exact relations of the Gmc. words are uncertain.

roe (2) --- small deer, O.E. ra, from raha, from P.Gmc. *raikhon (cf. O.N. ra, Du. ree, O.H.G. reho, Ger. Reh "doe"), perhaps from PIE base *rei- "streaked, spotted." Roebuck is c.1400, from roe + buck.

roentgen --- 1896, in Roentgen rays "X-rays," in allusion to Ger. physicist Wilhem Conrad Röntgen (1845-1923), who discovered X-rays in 1895. As a unit of exposure to radiation, it is attested from 1922, proposed in Fr. in 1921.

rogation --- 1387, from L. rogatio (gen. rogationis), from rogatus, pp. of rogare "to ask," apparently an image, lit. "to stretch out (the hand)," from PIE *rog-, 0-grade form of root *reg- "move in a straight line" (see regal). Rogation days were the Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday before Ascension Day, a time for processions round fields blessing crops and praying for good harvest, also blessing the boundary markers of each parish. Discouraged by Protestants as superstitious, but continued or revived in modified form as beating the bounds.

Roger --- masc. proper name, from O.Fr. Rogier, from O.H.G. Hrotger, lit. "famous with the spear," from hruod- "fame, glory" + ger "spear." As a generic name for "a person," attested from 1631. Slang meaning "penis" was popular c.1650-c.1870; hence the slang verb sense of "to copulate with (a woman)," attested from 1711. The use of the word in radio communication to mean "yes, I understand" is attested from 1941, from the U.S. military phonetic alphabet word for the letter -R-, in this case an abbreviation for "received." Said to have been used by the R.A.F. since 1938. The Jolly Roger pirate flag is first attested 1723, of unknown origin; jolly here has its otherwise obs. M.E. sense "high-hearted, gallant."

Roget --- in ref. to the "Thesaurus of English Words and Phrases" published 1852 by Eng. physician and philologist Peter Mark Roget (1779-1869).

rogue --- 1561, "idle vagrant," perhaps a shortened form of roger (with a hard -g-), thieves' slang for a begging vagabond who pretends to be a poor scholar from Oxford or Cambridge, perhaps from L. rogare "to ask." Another theory traces it to Celtic (cf. Bret. rog "haughty"); OED says, "There is no evidence of connexion with F. rogue 'arrogant.' " Rogue's gallery "police collection of mug shots" is attested from 1859.

roil --- 1590, probably from M.Fr. rouiller "to rust, make muddy," from O.Fr. rouil "mud, rust," from V.L. *robicula, from L. robigo "rust" (see robust). M.E. roil meant "to roam or rove about."

roister --- 1582, from an obsolete noun roister "noisy bully" (1551), from M.Fr. ruistre "ruffian," from O.Fr. ruste "rough country fellow," from L. rusticus (see rustic).

Roland --- masc. proper name, from Fr., from O.H.G. Hrodland, lit. "(having a) famous land." As legendary nephew of Charlemagne, celebrated in "Chanson de Roland," c.1300.

role --- part or character one takes, 1606, from Fr. rôle "part played by a person in life," lit. "roll (of paper) on which an actor's part is written," from O.Fr. rolle (see roll). Role model first attested 1957.

Rolex --- proprietary name of a make of watches, trademark reg. 1908 by Ger. businessman Hans Wilsdorf, with Wilsdorf & Davis, London. Invented name. Company moved out of Britain 1912 for tax purposes and now is headquartered in Geneva.

Rolf --- masc. proper name, introduced in England by the Normans, from O.N. Hrolfr, related to O.H.G. Hrodulf, lit. "wolf of fame" (see Rudolph). Rolfing (1972) as a deep massage technique is named for U.S. physiotherapist Ida P. Rolf (1897-1979), and first attested 1958, as Rolf Technique.

roll (n.) --- c.1225, "rolled-up piece of parchment or paper," from O.Fr. rolle, from M.L. rotulus "a roll of paper," from L. rotula "small wheel," dim. of rota "wheel." Meaning "dough which is rolled before baking" is first recorded 1581. Meaning "quantity of paper money" is from 1846; sense of "quantity of (rolled) film" is from 1890. Meaning "act of sexual intercourse" is attested from 1942. The military roll-call is from 1775; rollback "reduction" is attested from 1942, Amer.Eng. Roll over "reinvest" is from 1957.

roll (v.) --- c.1300 in intrans. sense of "to move by rotating;" c.1375 as "to move (something) by turning it over and over," from roll (n.).

roller (n.) --- c.1420, "rolling pin," from roll (v.). Meaning "hair-curler" is attested from 1795. Religious holy roller is attested from 1842, Amer.Eng. Roller-skate first attested 1863, Amer.Eng.; the verb is from 1928. Rollerblade is first attested 1985, a registered proprietary name in U.S. Roller-coaster is recorded from 1888; roller derby is from 1936.

rollicking --- 1811, adj. use of prp. of rollick "to frolic, sport" (though this does not appear in print until 1826), which is perhaps a blend of roll and frolic.

Rolls-Royce --- registered 1908 as trademark, named for designers C.S. Rolls (1877-1910) and Sir Henry Royce (1863-1933). Extended 1916 to any product of high quality. Shortened form Rolls first attested 1928.

roly-poly --- short and stout, 1820, probably a varied reduplication of roll. As a noun, it was used as the name of various ball games from 1713, and it was used as early as 1613 in the sense of "rascal."

Rom --- male gypsy, 1841, see Romany.

romaine --- 1907, from Fr. romaine (in laitue romaine, lit. "Roman lettuce"), from fem. of O.Fr. romain "Roman," from L. Romanus "Roman." Perhaps so called because of the lettuce's introduction into France (by Bureau de la Rivière, chamberlain of Charles V and VI) at the time of the Avignon papacy (1309-77).

roman --- a novel, 1765, from Fr. roman, from O.Fr. romanz (see romance); roman à clef, novel in which characters represent real persons, lit. "novel with a key" (Fr.), first attested in Eng. 1893.

Roman --- O.E., from L. Romanus "of Rome, Roman," from Roma "Rome" (see Rome). The O.E. word was romanisc, which yielded M.E. Romanisshe. As a type of numeral (opposed to Arabic) it is attested from 1728; as a typeface (opposed to Gothic, or black letter, and italic) it is recorded from 1519. Roman nose is from 1624. Roman candle recorded from 1834. Roman holiday "occasion on which entertainment or profit is derived from injury or death" is from 1886, originally in ref. to holidays for gladiatorial combat. Roman Catholic is attested from 1605, originally a conciliatory formation from the time of the Spanish Match, in place of Romanist, Romish which by that time had the taint of insult in Protestant England.

romance --- c.1300, "story of a hero's adventures," also (c.1330), "vernacular language of France" (as opposed to Latin), from O.Fr. romanz "verse narrative," originally an adverb, "in the vernacular language," from V.L. *romanice scribere "to write in a Romance language" (one developed from Latin instead of Frankish), from L. Romanicus "of or in the Roman style," from Romanus "Roman" (see Roman). The connecting notion is that medieval vernacular tales were usually about chivalric adventure. Literary sense extended by 1667 to "a love story." Extended 1612 to other modern languages derived from Latin (Spanish, Italian, etc.). Meaning "adventurous quality" first recorded 1801; that of "love affair, idealistic quality" is from 1916. The verb meaning "court as a lover" is from 1942.

Romanesque --- 1715, originally "descended from Latin" (cf. romance), later "architectural style in Europe between Roman and Gothic periods" (1819), from Roman (q.v.), influenced by Fr. romanesque, from L.L. Romanice "in Vulgar Latin" (see romance).

Romanic --- pertaining to Rome or the Roman people, 1708, originally in ref. to languages descended from Latin, from L. Romanicus, from Romanus "Roman" (see Roman).

Romano --- strong-tasting hard cheese, 1908, from It., lit. "Roman."

Romansh --- Rhaeto-Romanic, Latin-derived language spoken in the Grisons region of eastern Switzerland, 1663, from Grisons Rumansch, from L.L. Romanice "in Vulgar Latin" (see romance).

romantic --- 1659, "of the nature of a literary romance," from Fr. romantique, from M.Fr. romant "a romance," oblique case of O.Fr. romanz "verse narrative" (see romance). As a literary style, opposed to classical since before 1812. Meaning "characteristic of an ideal love affair" (such as usually formed the subject of literary romances) is from 1666. The noun meaning "an adherent of romantic virtues in literature" is from 1827. Romanticism first recorded 1803 as "a romantic idea;" generalized sense of "a tendency toward romantic ideas" is first recorded 1840.

Romany --- a gypsy, the Gypsy language, 1812, romani, fem. of romano (adj.) "Gypsy," from rom, the Gypsy word for "man, husband, male, Gypsy" (pl. roma), from Skt. domba-s "male member of a low caste of musicians."

Rome --- O.E., from O.Fr. Rome, from L. Roma, of uncertain origin. "The original Roma quadrata was the fortified enclosure on the Palatine hill," according to Tucker, who finds "no probability" in derivation from *sreu- "flow," and suggests the name is "most probably" from *urobsma (cf. urbs, robur) and otherwise, "but less likely" from *urosma "hill" (cf. Skt. varsman- "height, point," Lith. virsus "upper"). Another suggestion is that it is from Etruscan (cf. Rumon, former name of Tiber River). Common in proverbs, e.g. Rome was not buylt in one daye (1545), for when a man doth to Rome come, he must do as there is done (1599), All roads alike conduct to Rome (1806).

Romeo --- a lover, passionate admirer, seducer of women, 1766, from the name of the hero in Shakespeare's tragedy "Romeo and Juliet."

romp (v.) --- 1709, perhaps a variant of ramp (v.) (see rampage). Meaning "to win (a contest) with great ease" first attested 1888. Rompers "small children's overalls" first recorded 1909.

Ronald --- masc. proper name, from O.N. Rögnvaldr "Having the Gods' Power," from rögn "gods," lit. "decreeing powers" (pl. of regin "decree") + valdr "ruler."

rondeau --- 1525, from M.Fr. rondeau, from O.Fr. rondel (see rondel). Metrical form of 10 or 13 lines with only two rhymes.

rondel --- 1390, from O.Fr. rondel "short poem," lit. "small circle," dim. of roont (fem. roonde) "circular" (see round). Metrical form of 14 lines with only two rhymes. So called because the initial couplet is repeated at the end.

rondo --- 1797, "musical composition of one principal theme," from It. rondo, from Fr. rondeau, rondel, from O.Fr. rondel "little round" (see rondel).

rood --- O.E. rod "pole," varying from 6 to 8 yards, also "cross," especially that upon which Christ suffered, also "measure of land," prop. 40 square poles or perches, from P.Gmc. *rodo (cf. O.S. ruoda "stake, pile, cross," O.Fris. rode, M.Du. roede, O.H.G. ruota, Ger. Rute "rod"), probably connected with the root of rod. Klein suggests a connection between this group and L. ratis "raft," retae "trees standing on the bank of a stream;" O.C.S. ratiste "spear, staff," Lith. rekles "scaffolding."

roof --- O.E. hrof "roof, ceiling, top," from P.Gmc. *khrofaz (cf. O.Fris. rhoof "roof," M.Du. roof "cover, roof," Du. roef "deckhouse, cabin, coffin-lid," M.H.G. rof "penthouse," O.N. hrof "boat shed"). No apparent connections outside Gmc. "English alone has retained the word in a general sense, for which the other languages use forms corresponding to OE. þæc thatch" [OED]. The verb is from c.1475. Roof of the mouth is from late O.E. Raise the roof "create an uproar" is attested from 1860, originally in Southern Amer.Eng. Roofer "one who makes or repairs roofs" is from 1855.

rook (1) --- European crow, O.E. hroc, from P.Gmc. *khrokaz (cf. O.N. hrokr, M.Du. roec, M.Swed. roka, O.H.G. hruoh), possibly imitative of its raucous voice. Used as a disparaging term for persons since at least 1508, and extended by 1577 to mean "a cheat," especially at cards or dice. The verb "to defraud by cheating" (originally especially in a game) is first attested 1590. Rookery "colony of rooks" is from 1725.

rook (2) --- chess piece, c.1300, from O.Fr. roc, from Ar. rukhkh, from Pers. rukh, of unknown meaning, perhaps somehow related to the Indian name for the piece, rut, from Hindi rath "chariot." Confused in M.E. with roc (q.v.).

rookie --- 1892, "raw recruit," originally in Kipling's Barrack-Room Ballads, perhaps from recruit, influenced by rook (1) in its secondary sense, suggesting "easy to cheat."

room --- O.E. rum "space," from P.Gmc. *ruman (cf. O.N., O.S., O.H.G., Goth. rum, Ger. Raum "space," Du. ruim "hold of a ship, nave"), nouns formed from Gmc. adj. *ruma- "roomy, spacious," perhaps from a PIE base *rew- "wide, open" (cf. Avestan ravah- "space," L. rus "open country," O.Ir. roi, roe "plain field"). Original sense preserved in make room "clear space for oneself" (1375); meaning "chamber, cabin" first recorded 1312 as a nautical term, and first applied 1457 to chambers within houses. The O.E. word for this was cofa, ancestor of cove. The verb meaning "to occupy rooms" (especially with another) as a lodger" is first recorded 1828. Room-service is attested from 1930; room-temperature from 1924. Adj. roomy is attested from 1627. Roommate is first attested 1789, Amer.Eng. (short form roomie is from 1918). Roomth "sufficient space" (1540) now is obsolete.

roost --- late O.E. hrost "wooden framework of a roof, perch," from a Gmc. source, related to O.S. hrost, M.Du., Flem., Du. roest, roost "framework of a roof," O.N. hrot, Goth. hrot "roof." Exact relationship and ulterior connections unknown. The verb is from 1530. To rule the roost is recorded from 1769.

rooster --- 1772, from roost (earlier roost cock, 1606), in sense of "the roosting bird," favored in the U.S. as a puritan alternative to cock (and compare roach).

root (n.) --- underground part of a plant, late O.E. rot, from O.N. rot "root," from P.Gmc. *wrot, *vrot (with characteristic loss of -w- before -r-), from PIE *wrd-. The O.E. cognate was wyrt "root, herb, plant" (see wort); also cognate with L. radix. The usual O.E. words for "root" were wyrttruma and wyrtwala. Fig. use is from c.1200. Of teeth, hair, etc., from c.1225. Mathematical sense is from 1557. Slang meaning "penis" is recorded from 1846. The verb meaning "fixed or firmly attached by roots" (often fig.) is attested from 1398; sense of "to pull up by the root" (now usually uproot) also is from 1398. Root beer first recorded 1843, Amer.Eng.; root doctor is from 1821.

root (v1.) --- dig with the snout, 1538, from M.E. wroten "dig with the snout," from O.E. wrotan, from P.Gmc. *wrotanan (cf. O.N. rota, Swed. rota "to dig out, root," M.L.G. wroten, M.Du. wroeten, O.H.G. ruozian "to plow up"), cognate with L. rodere "to gnaw" (see rodent). Associated with the verb sense of root (n.). Extended sense of "poke about, pry" first recorded 1831. Phrase root hog or die "work or fail" first attested 1834, Amer.Eng. (in works of Davey Crockett, who noted it as an "old saying"). Reduplicated form rootin' tootin' "noisy, rambunctious" is recorded from 1875.

root (v2.) --- cheer, support, 1889, Amer.Eng., originally in a baseball context, probably from root (v.1) via intermediate sense of "study, work hard" (1856).

rope --- O.E. rap, from P.Gmc. *raipaz (cf. O.N. reip, M.Du., Du. reep "rope," Goth. skauda-raip "shoe-lace," O.H.G., Ger. reif "ring, hoop"). Technically, only cordage above one inch in circumference and below 10 (bigger-around than that is a cable). Nautical use varies. Finnish raippa "hoop, rope, twig" is a Gmc. loan-word. The verb is attested from c.1300. To know the ropes (1840) is originally a seaman's term. Phrase on the ropes "defeated" is attested from 1924, a fig. extension from boxing. To be at the end of (one's) rope "out of resources and options" is first attested 1686. Formerly also in many slang and extended uses related to hanging, e.g. John Roper's window "a noose," rope-ripe "deserving to be hanged," both 16c.

Roquefort --- type of cheese, 1837, from the village in the southwest of France, where it originally was made. Ref. to salad dressing made from this kind of cheese is from 1943.

Rorschach --- 1927, in reference to Swiss psychiatrist Hermann Rorschach (1885-1922), who developed the personality test using ink blots. The town so named on the Swiss side of Lake Constance is from an early form of Ger. Röhr "reeds" + Schachen "lakeside."

Rosa --- fem. proper name, from L. Rosa, lit. "rose" (see rose).

rosary --- c.1440, "rose garden," from L. rosarium "rose garden," from neut. of rosarius "of roses," from rosa "rose" (see rose). The sense of "series of prayers" is 1547, from M.Fr. rosaire, a figurative use of the word meaning "rose garden," on the notion of a "garden" of prayers. This embodies the medieval conceit of comparing collections to bouquets (cf. anthology and M.L. hortulus animæ, "prayerbook," lit. "little garden of the soul"). Sense transf. 1597 to the strings of beads used as a memory aid in reciting the rosary.

rose --- O.E. rose, from L. rosa (cf. It., Sp. rosa, Fr. rose; also source of Du. roos, Ger. Rose, Swed. ros, etc.), probably via It. and Gk. dialects from Gk. rhodon "rose" (Aeolic wrodon), ult. from Pers. *vrda-. But cf. Tucker: "The rose was a special growth of Macedonia & the Thracian region as well as of Persia, & the Lat. & Gk. names prob. came from a Thraco-Phrygian source." Aramaic warda is from O.Pers.; the modern Pers. cognate, via the usual sound changes, is gul, source of Turk. gül "rose." The ultimate source of all this may be PIE *wrdho- "thorn, bramble." Used of a color since 1530. In English civil wars of 15c., the white rose was the badge of the House of York, the red of its rival Lancaster. Rose-water is attested from 1398. Rose-colored "optimistic" is first recorded 1854. In the fig. sense, bed of roses is from 1593. Rosy in the sense of "cheerful" is first recorded 1775; meaning "promising" is from 1887. Rose of Sharon (Song of Sol. ii.1) is attested from 1611 and named for the fertile strip of coastal Palestine. The flower has not been identified; used in U.S. since 1847 of the Syrian hibiscus.

rosé --- light red wine, 1897, from Fr. vin rosé, lit. "pink wine."

rosemary --- c.1440, earlier rosmarine (c.1300), from L. rosmarinus, lit. "dew of the sea" (cf. Fr. romarin), from ros "dew" + marinus (see marine). Perhaps so called because it grew near coasts. Form altered in Eng. by influence of rose and Mary. L. ros is from PIE *ras-/*eras- "to flow, wet, moisten" (cf. Lith. rasa, O.C.S. rosa "dew," Skt. rasah "sap, juice, fluid, essence," Hitt. arszi "flows," and perhaps also Rha, Scythian name of the River Volga (see rhubarb)).

Rosetta Stone --- discovered 1798 at Rosetta, Egypt; now in British Museum. Dating to 2c. B.C.E., its trilingual inscription helped Jean-François Champollion decipher Egyptian demotic and hieroglyphics in 1822, which opened the way to study of all early Egyptian records. Hence, fig. use for "something which provides the key to previously unattainable understanding" (1902).

rosette --- a rose-shaped ornament, especially a bunch or knot of ribbons worn as a decoration, 1790, from Fr. rosette, from O.Fr. rosette, dim. of rose "rose."

Rosh Hashanah --- Jewish new year, 1846, from Heb. rosh hashshanah, lit. "head of the year," from rosh "head of" + hash-shanah "the year."

Rosicrucian --- 1624 (n.), 1662 (adj.), from Mod.L. rosa crucis (DuCange) or crux, Latinization of Ger. Rosenkreuz, Fr. rosecroix, from the secret society's reputed founder Christian Rosenkreuz, said to date from 1484, but not mentioned before 1614.

rosin --- c.1350, from O.Fr. raisine, variant of résine (see resin). The verb is from 1497.

roster --- 1727, from Du. rooster "table, list," originally "gridiron," from M.Du. roosten "to roast" (see roast). So called from the grid of lines drawn on a paper to make a list.

rostrum --- 1542, from L. rostrum, name of the platform stand for public speakers in the Forum in ancient Rome. It was decorated with the beaks of ships taken in the first naval victory of the Roman republic, over Antium, in 338 B.C.E., and the word's older sense is "end of a ship's prow," lit. "beak, muzzle, snout," originally "means of gnawing," instrument noun form of rodere "to gnaw" (see rodent). Cf. claustrum "lock, bar," from claudere "to shut." Extended sense of any platform for public speaking is first recorded 1766. Plural form is rostra.

rot (v.) --- O.E. rotian "to decay," from P.Gmc. *rutjan (cf. O.S. roton, O.N. rotna, O.Fris. rotia, M.Du. roten, O.H.G. rozzen "to rot," Ger. rößen "to steep flax"), from stem *rut-. The noun (c.1300) probably is of Scand. origin (cf. Icel. rot, Swed. röta, Dan. røde "decay, putrefaction"), and is related to the verb. Slang noun sense of "rubbish, trash" is from 1848. Rotgut "unwholesome liquor" is from 1633; rotter "one who is objectionable on moral grounds" is 1894 slang.

rotary --- 1731, from M.L. rotarius "pertaining to wheels," from L. rota "wheel," from PIE base *roto- "to run, to turn, to roll" (cf. Skt. rathah "car, chariot;" Avestan ratho; Lith. ratas "wheel," ritu "I roll;" O.H.G. rad, Ger. Rad, Du. rad, O.Fris. reth, O.S. rath, O.Ir. roth, Welsh rhod "carriage wheel"). The international service club (founded by Paul P. Harris in Chicago in 1905) so called from the practice of clubs entertaining in rotation. Hence Rotarian (1911).

rotation --- 1555, from L. rotationem (nom. rotatio), noun of action from rotare "revolve, roll," from PIE *roto- (see rotary). Verb rotate is an 1808 back-formation. Rotator "muscle which allows a part to be moved circularly" is recorded from 1676.

rotavirus --- 1974, wheel-shaped virus causing inflammation of the lining of the intestines, from L. rota "wheel" + virus.

rote --- c.1300, in phrase bi rote "by heart," of uncertain origin, sometimes said to be connected with O.Fr. rote "route" (see route), or from L. rota "wheel" (see rotary), but O.E.D. calls both suggestions groundless.

Rothschild --- rich person, 1833, in ref. to the international banking family descended from Mayer Amschel Rothschild (1744-1812) of Frankfurt.

rotifera --- class of microscopic freshwater organisms, 1830, from Mod.L., from L. rota "wheel" (see rotary) + -fer "bearing" (see bear (v.)). The animalcules use rotary organs to swim about.

rotisserie --- 1868, "restaurant where meat is roasted on a spit," from Fr. rôtisserie "shop selling cooked food, restaurant," from prp. stem of rôtir "to roast," from O.Fr. rostir (see roast). As an in-home cooking apparatus, attested from 1953. Manufacturers (or their copy writers) back-formed a verb, rotiss (1958). Rotisserie league (1980), a form of fantasy baseball, is based on La Rotisserie, the Manhattan restaurant where it was conceived.

rotogravure --- 1913, from Ger. Rotogravur (originally, in full, Deutsche Tiefdrück Gesellschaft), said to blend two corporate names, Rotophot and Deutsche Photogravur A.G. Etymologically, the roots are L. rota "wheel, roller" and Fr. gravure "engraving." The process was used for printing photo sections of newpapers and magazines, so that the word came to be used for these.