check [ME] Chess has given the word check its oldest meanings. It came into English via Old French eschec from Persian šāh ‘king’ (the origin of shah, as in the Shah of Iran), and was first used by chess players to announce that the opponent’s king had been placed under attack. From there the meaning gradually broadened to ‘to stop, restrain, or control’ [LME] and ‘to examine the accuracy of’ [L17th]. A squared pattern is described as checked or a check [LME] because of the appearance of a chessboard. Checkmate [LME] derives from Persian šāh māt, ‘the king is dead’. Chess [ME] itself came into English during the 12th century from Old French eschec, or rather its plural form, esches, but probably goes back ultimately to the ancient Indian language Sanskrit. The game seems to have begun in India or China around the 6th century ad and to have been adopted in Persia, spreading to the West through the Arabs. The game was popular in medieval England. See also exchequer.