Etymology: Origin uncertain; apparently originally a canting term. Perhaps < the male forename Roger (see Roger n.², and compare the cant uses at Roger n.² 2, although these are all first attested later). N.E.D. (1909) claims that the medial -g- was pronounced as a plosive rather than an affricate, a conjecture for which there is no supporting evidence. On the basis of this assumption, it suggests that the word may be related to rogue n., and also compares rogation n. However, there is no evidence to support these conjectures, and an etymological connection with the family of classical Latin rogāre (see rogation n.) is unlikely.

Etymology: < the male forename Roger < Old French Roger , Rogier (Middle French Rogier , Middle French, French Roger ) < a Germanic (probably Frankish) name (compare Frankish (in Latinized form) Chrodgarius , Rodgarius , Old High German Ruodegēr , Hrōdgēr (Middle High German Rüedeger , German Rüdiger ), Old Icelandic Hróðgeirr , Róðgeirr , and also Old English Hrōðgār (apparently only attested as the name of a Danish king)) < the Germanic base of Old English hrōðor comfort, benefit, Old Icelandic hróðr praise (a common element in Germanic personal names; probably ultimately from the same Indo-European base as ancient Greek κῆρυξ herald: see kerygma n.) + the Germanic base of Old English gār spear (see gare n.¹). Compare earlier Hodge n. An earlier use of the personal name as common noun may perhaps be shown by roger n.¹The male forename is attested in England from the 11th cent. onwards, initially as the name of people of continental, especially Norman, descent, appearing in Old English as Rocgere , Rogere , Roggere (Middle English Rodger , Roger , Rogger , Rogier ) and in post-classical Latin contexts in the Latinized form Rogerus (occasionally also Rogerius ). The semantic motivation of senses 1a and 3 is unclear; with the former compare Tib of the buttery at Tib n.¹ 3; with the latter compare Peter n. 6a. In sense 1b perhaps with allusion to earlier roger v.¹, with reference to the ram servicing female sheep (compare also sense 4). Although the source of quot. 1762 at sense 1b claims that sense 1b is the source of a ‘vetus verbum rogerare’, no such post-classical Latin verb is attested, and the Latin form is probably intended as a euphemistic reference to the English slang verb roger v.¹ With the cant uses at sense 2 perhaps compare earlier roger n.¹, and see discussion at that entry. With Old Roger at sense 2b compare Old Nick n. In sense 5 after Roger's Blast n.; compare earlier rodges-blast n., rodion n.

Etymology: < Roger n.²The word is sometimes written with asterisks, dashes, etc., to represent suppressed letters, so as to avoid the charge of obscenity; compare quot. 1763.

Etymology: < roger int.

Etymology: Representing the letter R (the initial letter of received adj., used to acknowledge the receipt of a message) in radio communication; in the now usual radio code (the NATO phonetic alphabet), the letter R is represented by Romeo (see Romeo n. 3).