How did the word ‘right’ come to mean both a direction and ‘correct’?

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How did the word ‘right’ come to mean both a direction and ‘correct’?

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3 Answers

Anonymous 0 Comments

The original meaning of “right” was “correct” or “straight” or “true” – as in a “right triangle” or “right answer.”

Around the 12th century, the term started to be used for the hand that was stronger for most people. The interpretation was that this was the “correct” hand for writing or doing tasks.

Anonymous 0 Comments

You might be interested to know that the word “sinister” comes from the word for “left”: https://www.merriam-webster.com/words-at-play/sinister-left-dexter-right-history

Right-handed people are more common. Left handed people were looked down upon.

Anonymous 0 Comments

You can find all answers to these type of questions by googling ‘etymology + /whatever you want to know the etymology of/’. There are a lot of nice sites depending on which language you’re searching in, including Wiktionary and etymonline.