Ron in Grand Rapids, Michigan, grew up hearing relatives ask for a receipt when they wanted a recipe, as in getting the instructions for a good cake. That usage is old-fashioned but well established. Both receipt and recipe go back to Latin recipere, “to take” or “to receive.” English used receipt this way for hundreds of years in England, and it also has a long history in American English. The Rx on a prescription is a medieval shorthand form of recipe. This is part of a complete episode.
Transcript of ““Receipt” for a Recipe Is Old Usage, Not a Shopping List Slip-Up”
Hello, you have A Way with Words.
Hi, this is Ron. I’m in Grand Rapids, Michigan.
Hi, Ron. Welcome to the program.
Hello, Ron. Welcome.
What’s cooking?
Hey, well, in my family, in both sides of my family, but more so in my dad’s family, if we would be at a gathering, a potluck or something, and my dad would turn to my mother and say, “Ma, that’s really good cake. You should get a receipt for that.” As if she was buying the cake, not going to make it and request a recipe for it. And I’ve heard that on occasion other than my family. And one time many years ago, I read a book, and it was in the book. And I just wonder about that.
So he would say receipt instead of recipe.
That’s correct.
And do you know how he would spell the word?
No, I don’t. But it definitely was a receipt as a receipt for a purchase.
Yeah, there are people who say that, and not that many anymore. It’s pretty old-fashioned. But some people do say receipt for recipe.
Okay.
It’s interesting. Both of those words, receipt and recipe, go back to a Latin word, recuperi, which means to take or to receive. And the idea is, if I write out a formula for you, ingredients and how to, and then I write it down and hand it to you, then I’m telling you to take it, receive it. Recipe is actually the imperative from recipere in Latin. So it’s dying out now. It’s old-fashioned, but it must have been confusing when you first heard it.
So in brief then, these are two separate words that came into the language from Latin at different times to mean roughly the same thing.
Mm—
Okay.
Very good.
Right.
And as a matter of fact, you know when you go to the pharmacy and you get a prescription and it says Rx there?
Yes.
It looks like Rx.
That’s a form of shorthand that was used in the Middle Ages to indicate recipe.
Interesting.
For a prescription, yeah.
Well, Ron, we appreciate your calling.
Okay.
Bye-bye.
You folks have a great day.
Okay, you too.
Bye-bye.
Bye-bye.
Bye-bye.
So this is a long history in American English, but in English in general, right?
Right.
Using receipt in place of recipe.
And it’s not a misunderstanding. It’s just a separate word that traveled its own path.
Right.
Very cool.
Right.
And it’s not just the United States. It was used that way in England for hundreds of years.
But definitely dying out.
Yes.
This is the older generation, probably gone in 50 years, 100 years.
Yeah.
Yeah.
Sadly.
New words will replace it.
We’d love to hear your questions about language. Call us, 877-929-9673, or you can send them an email. The address is words@waywordradio.org.
