Etymology 23: sacrifice

Going back now even further than the 14th century, we move to the mid-13 century. The word "sacrifice" comes from the Latin "sacrificium," from "sacrificus" meaning, "performing priestly functions or sacrifices," from "sacra" meaning "sacred rites." The word, "ansegdniss" predates sacrifice. Its meaning indicates a sense of "something given up for the sake of another," and was first recorded the 1590s.