Etymology: Two original types of the word have existed in English, viz. conduit , conduite from Old French, and the current conduct immediately from Latin conductus (4th declension), < participial stem of condūcĕre to conduct v., conduce v. The former was partly < Old French conduit (= Provençal conduch , Spanish conducto , Italian condotto ) < Latin conductus , as above; partly < Old French conduite (Spanish conducta , Italian condotta ) < late Latin type *conducta , noun feminine < past participle (corresponding to nouns in -āta ). These two nouns remain distinct in French, but through the obsolescence of final -e , they fell together in Middle English conduyt(e . This was often phonetically weakened to condute , condyt(e ; in 15th cent. it was frequently, like the French, spelt conduict , conduycte (the c being inserted from Latin), and finally in 16th cent. was entirely refashioned after Latin, as conducte , conduct . The earlier form remains with a differentiation of sense: see conduit n.

Etymology: < Latin conductus hired, past participle of condūcĕre to lead together, etc., also to hire: see conduce v. In early use < French conduit, past participle.

Etymology: Of this, as of conduct n.¹, two (or, at length, three) types have been in use: viz. conduyt-en , < French conduit , -ite ( < Latin conductus , conducta ), past participle of condui-re < Latin condūcĕre (see conduce v.); often phonetically reduced to condute , and to condite , condyte , condyth , condeth ; but finally, in 15–16th cent., assimilated to the Latin participial stem as conduct . The ultimate forms of these were so different, that they might be considered distinct words; for the sake of the history they are here treated together. There are several other representatives of Latin condūcĕre , immediately, or through French, for which see conduce v.