'ascenseur' originates from French, specifically ultimately from the Late Latin verb 'ascendere' (from Latin 'ad-' + 'scandere'), where 'ad-' meant 'to/toward' and 'scandere' meant 'to climb'.

'ascenseur' changed from the Late Latin 'ascendere' to Old/Middle French forms related to 'ascendre'/'ascenter', and in modern French became 'ascenseur' (coined for mechanical lifting devices in the 19th century).

Initially related to the action 'to climb' or 'to ascend,' it evolved into a noun meaning 'a device that raises or lifts' and now specifically denotes an elevator (lift).