英语词源字典 - 在线词源网站

tear (v.1)[tear 词源字典]: "pull apart," Old English teran "to tear, lacerate" (class IV strong verb; past tense tær, past participle toren), from Proto-Germanic *teran (cognates: Old Saxon terian, Middle Dutch teren "to consume," Old High German zeran "to destroy," German zehren, Gothic ga-tairan "to tear, destroy"), from PIE *der- (2) "to split, peel, flay," with derivatives referring to skin and leather (cognates: Sanskrit drnati "cleaves, bursts," Greek derein "to flay," Armenian terem "I flay," Old Church Slavonic dera "to burst asunder," Breton darn "piece").

The Old English past tense survived long enough to get into Bible translations as tare before giving place 17c. to tore, which is from the old past participle toren. Sense of "to pull by force" (away from some situation or attachment) is attested from late 13c. To be torn between two things (desires, loyalties, etc.) is from 1871.[tear etymology, tear origin, 英语词源]
tear (v.2): early 15c., "shed tears," 1650s, "fill with tears" mainly in American English, from tear (n.1). Related: Teared; tearing. Old English verb tæherian, tearian "to weep" did not survive into Middle English.
tear-drop (n.): also teardrop, 1799, from tear (n.1) + drop (n.).
tear-jerker (n.): 1911, in reference to newspaper stories about tragic situations, on model of soda-jerker and perhaps especially beer-jerker, from tear (n.1) + jerk (v.).
tearful (adj.): 1580s, from tear (n.1) + -ful. Related: Tearfully; tearfulness.
teary (adj.): Old English tearig; see tear (n.1) + -y (2). Related: Tearily; teariness.
tease (v.): formerly also teaze, Old English tæsan "pluck, pull, tear; pull apart, comb" (fibers of wool, flax, etc.), from Proto-Germanic *taisijan (cognates: Danish tæse, Middle Dutch tesen, Dutch tezen "to draw, pull, scratch," Old High German zeisan "to tease, pick wool").

The original sense is of running thorns through wool or flax to separate, shred, or card the fibers. The figurative sense of "vex, worry, annoy" (sometimes done in good humor) emerged 1610s. For similar sense development, compare heckle. Hairdressing sense is recorded from 1957. Related: Teased; teasing; teasingly.
tease (n.): 1690s, "act of teasing," from tease (v.). Meaning "one who teases" is from 1852. Specifically as short for cock-teaser, it was in use by 1976.
teasel (n.): also teazel, teazle, type of plant, Old English tæsel "large thistle used in teasing cloth," from Proto-Germanic *taisilo (cognates: Old High German zeisala), from root of Old English tæsan "to pluck" (see tease (v.)).
teaser (n.): "one who teases" (wool, flax, etc.), late 15c. (late 13c. as a surname), agent noun from tease (v.). From 1934 as "short sample, introductory advertisement."
teaspoon (n.): 1680s, from tea + spoon (n.). Related: teaspoonful.
teat (n.): mid-13c., from Old French tete "teat" (12c., Modern French tette), from Proto-Germanic *titta (source of Old English titt, see tit). Spanish teta, Italian tetta are from the same source.
tec (n.): 1879 in thieves' slang as short for detective (n.); 1934 as short for detective story.
tech (n.): 1906 as short for technical college (or institute, etc.), American English; 1942 as short for technician.
techie (n.): one well-versed in the latest technology, by 1984.
technetium (n.): 1947, coined in Modern Latin from Greek tekhnetos "artificial," from tekhne "art, skill, craft" (see techno-) + metallic element ending -ium.
technic (adj.): 1610s, "technical," from Latin technicus, from Greek tekhnikos "of or pertaining to art, made by art," from tekhne "art, skill, craft" (see techno-). As a noun, "performance method of an art," 1855, a nativization of technique.
technical (adj.): 1610s, "skilled in a particular art or subject," formed in English from technic + -al (1), or in part from Greek tekhnikos "of art; systematic," in reference to persons "skillful, artistic," from tekhne "art, skill, craft" (see techno-).

The sense narrowed to "having to do with the mechanical arts" (1727). Basketball technical foul (one which does not involve contact between opponents) is recorded from 1934. Boxing technical knock-out (one in which the loser is not knocked out) is recorded from 1921; abbreviation TKO is from 1940s. Technical difficulty is from 1805.
technicality (n.): 1814, "that which is peculiar to any science, art, etc.," from technical + -ity. Meaning "technical character or quality" is from 1828. Related: Technicalities.
technician (n.): 1833, "person expert in the technicalities of some question," from technic + -ian. Meaning "person skilled in mechanical arts" is recorded from 1939.