/ˈærəɡənt/
[adjective] Behaving as if you are better or more important than other people, and showing little respect for their feelings or opinions.
Every arrogant person is, in Latin, literally 'claiming something for themselves' that probably isn't theirs to claim.
The story of 'arrogant' begins in ancient Rome with the Latin verb 'rogare', meaning 'to ask' or 'to propose'. This was a common and neutral word in everyday Roman life — a citizen might 'rogare' a question, or a politician might 'rogare' a law before the people. But when the prefix 'ad-' (meaning 'to' or 'toward') was added, the compound 'arrogare' took on a sharper edge: it meant 'to claim something for oneself', 'to appropriate', or 'to demand as one's own right'. The shift is subtle but powerful — from simply asking, to seizing.
From 'arrogare' came the present participle 'arrogans' (meaning 'claiming for oneself'), and its genitive form 'arrogantis' gave rise to the noun 'arrogantia', meaning excessive self-assertion or presumption. Roman writers used these words to describe a specific social vice — the attitude of someone who takes credit, status, or authority that does not rightfully belong to them. Cicero and other Latin authors deployed 'arrogantia' as a term of strong moral criticism, the opposite of the Roman virtue of 'modestia' (modesty).
The word entered Old French as 'arrogant', keeping its Latin meaning largely intact, and from there it crossed the Channel into Middle English during the 14th century. English writers adopted it readily because it described something universal — the particular unpleasantness of a person who acts as though the world owes them special treatment. By the time it appeared in English texts, it already carried the full weight of disapproval it still holds today.
What makes the etymology so revealing is that original sense of 'claiming for oneself'. Modern English uses 'arrogant' to describe an attitude — a look, a tone, a manner — but the Latin root reminds us that arrogance is fundamentally an act of theft: taking credit, respect, or superiority that one has not earned. The arrogant person does not just feel superior; they 'arrogate' superiority to themselves, grabbing it without permission.
The same Latin root 'rogare' quietly lives on in many other common English words, each showing a different shade of 'asking'. Latin 'rogare' → Old French 'rogacion' → English 'rogation' (a formal plea or prayer). Latin 'interrogare' → Old French 'interroger' → English 'interrogate' (to question formally). Latin 'derogare' (to detract from) → Old French 'deroger' → English 'derogate', and its cousin 'derogatory'. Latin 'prerogare' (to ask before others) → Old French 'prerogative' → English 'prerogative'. Each of these words carries a trace of that original Roman act of asking — only 'arrogant' turned the asking into a kind of taking.