sequ

Latin

Variants:sequsecutsecu

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About This Root

The Latin verb sequī meant simply "to follow" — to walk behind, to come after, to go along with. Like many Latin verbs, it had two stems that English borrowed separately: the present stem sequ- and the past-participle stem secūt- (from secūtus, "having followed"). Almost every word in this family is one or the other, and once you spot which stem you're looking at, the whole group falls into place.

Start with the literal core. sequ- + the idea of order gives sequence — things that follow one another, one-two-three. Add the suffix and you get sequential (in order) and sequel (the story that follows the first one).

Now add prefixes, and the "following" turns abstract:

- con- (with, together) + sequ → consequence: what "follows along with" an action — its result. consequent, consequently, and consequential all spin off this: a consequence is what comes after; something consequential is heavy with consequences (important).
- sub- (after, close behind) + sequ → subsequent: literally "following close after." Subsequent events are the ones that come next.
- ob- (toward, at) + sequ → obsequious: following someone toward them too eagerly — trailing at their heels, fawning. A perfectly negative word built from a neutral root.

The secūt- stem carries the harder, more active sense of pursuing — following with intent:

- ex- (out, to the end) + secūt → execute: to "follow out" a task all the way to completion. Chillingly, when the thing followed to the end is a death sentence, execute means to put someone to death.
- pro- (forward) + secūt → prosecute: to pursue someone forward through the courts — to bring charges.
- per- (thoroughly, all the way) + secūt → persecute: to chase someone relentlessly, to hound them. Notice how close prosecute and persecute look, yet one is a legal process and the other is cruelty.
- con- (together) + secūt → consecutive: following one right after another with no gap — three consecutive days.

Two surprises round out the family. second (the number, the unit of time, and the verb "to second a motion") comes from Latin secundus, "the one following" the first — that's why seconding a proposal means following it with your support, and why a second is the unit that follows in counting. And sequela (a medical condition that follows an illness) and sequacious (slavishly following others) keep the root close to its plain meaning.

The pattern: sequ- for passive following (sequence, consequence), secūt- for active pursuit (execute, prosecute, persecute). The prefix tells you the direction; the stem tells you whether you're trailing along or chasing down.

From Latin sequī 'to follow,' with past-participle stem secūtus. The present stem sequ- gives sequence, consequence, subsequent, sequel; the participle stem secut- gives execute, prosecute, persecute. Whether something follows in order (sequence), follows as a result (consequence), or is chased down to the end (execute), the core image is one thing coming after another.

Memory Tip

Picture a line of people, each following the one in front. That's sequ. A sequence is the line in order; a consequence follows your action like a shadow; a sequel follows the first movie. When the following turns into chasing — execute (chase a task to the end), prosecute (chase through court), persecute (chase to torment) — you're seeing the secut- side of the same root.

Core Words Deep Dive

The few words from this family worth telling in full — one by one.

execute

ex- (out, to the end) + secūt (followed) = to 'follow a task all the way out' — to carry it through to completion. The same logic produces its darkest sense: when what is followed to the very end is a death sentence, to execute someone is to put them to death. One root, two registers — running a project and ending a life — joined by the idea of following something to its conclusion.

persecute

per- (thoroughly, all the way) + secūt (chase) = to chase someone relentlessly because of who they are or what they believe. It looks almost identical to prosecute (pro- 'forward' through the courts), but the prefixes split them: prosecute is a lawful legal pursuit, persecute is cruel hounding. The state prosecutes a criminal; a tyrant persecutes a minority.

consequence

con- (with, along) + sequ (follow) = what 'follows along with' an action — its result. The whole con- branch grows from here: consequent (resulting), consequently (therefore), and consequential, which means not just 'resulting' but 'weighty with consequences' — i.e. important. A consequential decision is one whose consequences matter.

second

The most surprising member. It comes from Latin secundus, 'the one following' the first — hence the ordinal number. The time unit is the 'second' division that follows the first (minute) when splitting an hour. And to second a motion is to follow it with your support. Three everyday meanings, all hiding the idea of 'following.'

obsequious

ob- (toward) + sequ (follow) + -ious = following someone toward them too eagerly — trailing at their heels, ready to please. Latin obsequī was neutral ('to comply'), but English keeps only the negative: an obsequious waiter or courtier fawns and flatters. A vivid case of a plain root acquiring a sneer.

Related Roots

cedSimilar

Both involve movement: sequ is to 'follow' (come after someone/something), ced is to 'go / move along' (proceed, recede). Quick test: if A comes after B → sequ (sequence, subsequent); if something simply moves forward or back → ced (proceed, recede).

gressSimilar

gress (from gradī, 'to step/walk') is about taking steps forward or through (progress, transgress). sequ is about following behind. gress = your own stepping; sequ = trailing after someone else.