quword 趣词
Word Origins Dictionary
- confederate (v.)



[confederate 词源字典] - late 14c., from Late Latin confoederatus "leagued together," past participle of confoederare "to unite by a league," from com- "with, together" (see com-) + foederare, from foedus (genitive foederis) "a league" (see federal). Also used as a past participle adjective from late 14c., as a simple adjective from 1550s; meaning "of or belonging to the Confederate States of America" is from 1861. Used as a noun from late 15c. (Late Latin confoederatus also was used as a noun in its day).[confederate etymology, confederate origin, 英语词源]
- confederation (n.)




- early 15c., "act of confederating," from Middle French confédération, from Old French confederacion (14c.), from Late Latin confoederationem (nominative confoederatio), noun of action from confoederare (see confederate). Meaning "states or persons united by a league" is from 1620s.
- confer (v.)




- 1530s, from Middle French conférer (14c.) "to give, converse, compare," from Latin conferre "to bring together," figuratively "to compare; consult, deliberate, talk over," from com- "together" (see com-) + ferre "to bear" (see infer). Sense of "taking counsel" led to conference. The meaning "compare" (common 1530-1650) is largely obsolete, but the abbreviation cf. still is used in this sense. Related: Conferred; conferring.
- conference (n.)




- 1550s, "act of conferring," from Middle French conférence (15c.), from Medieval Latin conferentia, from Latin conferens, present participle of conferre (see confer). Meaning "formal meeting for consultation" is from 1580s.
- conferral (n.)




- 1880, from confer + -al (2).
- confess (v.)




- late 14c., from Old French confesser (transitive and intransitive), from Vulgar Latin *confessare, from Latin confess-, past participle stem of confiteri "to acknowledge," from com- "together" (see com-) + fateri "to admit," akin to fari "speak," from PIE root *bha- (2) "to speak, tell, say" (see fame (n.)).
Its original religious sense was of one who avows his religion in spite of persecution or danger but does not suffer martyrdom. Old French confesser thus had a figurative sense of "to harm, hurt, make suffer." Related: Confessed; confessing. An Old English word for it was andettan. - confessed (adj.)




- "self-acknowledged," 1560s, past participle adjective from confess.
- confession (n.)




- late 14c., "action of confessing," originally in religion, from Old French confession (10c.), from Latin confessionem (nominative confessio) "confession, acknowledgement," noun of action from past participle stem of confiteri (see confess). In law, from 1570s. Meaning "that which is confessed" is mid-15c. An Old English word for it was andettung, also scriftspræc.
- confessional (n.)




- "place where a priest sits to hear confession," 1727, from French confessional, from Medieval Latin confessionale, noun use of neuter of confessionalis (adj.), from confiteri (see confess).
- confessional (adj.)




- "pertaining to confession," mid-15c., from Medieval Latin confessionalis (see confessional (n.)).
- confessor (n.)




- late Old English, "one who avows his religion," especially in the face of danger, but does not suffer martyrdom, from Latin confessor, agent noun from confiteri (see confess). Meaning "one who hears confessions" is from mid-14c.; this properly would be Latin confessarius, but Latin confessor was being used in this sense from the 9th century.
Edward the Confessor (c.1003-1066, canonized 1161), last Anglo-Saxon king, was pious enough but does not seem to fit his title; perhaps so called to distinguish him from another Anglo-Saxon saint/king, Edward the Martyr, who does fit his. - confetti (n.)




- 1815, from Italian plural of confetto "sweetmeat," via Old French, from Latin confectum, confectus (see confection). A small candy traditionally thrown during carnivals in Italy, custom adopted in England for weddings and other occasions, with symbolic tossing of paper.
- confidant (n.)




- 1610s, confident, "(male) person trusted with private affairs," from French confident (16c.), from Italian confidente "a trusty friend," literally "confident, trusty," from Latin confidentem (nominative confidens), present participle of confidere "to trust, confide" (see confidence). The spelling with -a- came to predominate 18c. and might reflect the French pronunciation.
- confidante (n.)




- 1709, "female confidant," from French confidente, fem. of confident (see confidant).
- confide (v.)




- mid-15c., "to trust or have faith," from Latin confidere "to trust in, rely firmly upon, believe" (see confidence). Meaning "to share a secret with" is from 1735; phrase confide in (someone) is from 1888. Related: Confided; confiding.
- confidence (n.)




- early 15c., from Middle French confidence or directly from Latin confidentia, from confidentem (nominative confidens) "firmly trusting, bold," present participle of confidere "to have full trust or reliance," from com-, intensive prefix (see com-), + fidere "to trust" (see faith). For sense of "swindle" see con (adj.).
- confident (adj.)




- 1570s, "self-reliant, sure of oneself," from Middle French confident, from Latin confidentem (nominative confidens) "firmly trusting, reliant, self-confident, bold, daring," present participle of confidere (see confidence). Related: Confidently.
- confidente (n.)




- see confidant.
- confidential (adj.)




- 1759, from Latin confidentia (see confidence) + -al (1). Related: Confidentiality; confidentially.
- configuration (n.)




- 1550s, from Latin configurationem (nominative configuratio), noun of action from past participle stem of configurare (see configure).