An Etymological Dictionary of the German Language/Annotated/tasten
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tasten, verb, ‘to touch, fumble, grope,’ from the equivalent Middle High German tasten, weak verb. Borrowed about 1200 A.D. from the Romance cognate Italian tastare (French tâter), ‘to feel, fumble,’ which is based on a Latin *taxitare (allied to late Latin taxare, ‘to touch sharply’).