Category: vocabulary

late 14c., “interpretation of signs, dreams, and omens,” also “a supposing, a surmising,” from Old French conjecture “surmise, guess,” or directly from Latin coniectura “conclusion, interpretation, guess, inference,” literally “a casting together (of facts, etc.),” from coniectus, past participle of conicere “to throw together,” from assimilated form of com “together” (see con-) + iacere “to throw” (from PIE root *ye- “to throw, impel”).

Sense of “an unverified supposition” is from 1520s; that of “act of forming of opinion without proof” is from 1530s.

1803, “representing vocal sounds,” from Modern Latin phoneticus (Zoega, 1797), from Greek phōnētikos “vocal,” from phōnētos “to be spoken, utterable,” verbal adjective of phōnein “to speak clearly, utter,” from phōnē “sound, voice,” from PIE root *bha- (2) “to speak, tell, say” (see fame (n.)). Meaning “relating or pertaining to the human voice as used in speech” is by 1861. Related: Phonetical.

early 15c., “pleasant,” from Late Latin amicabilis “friendly,” a word in Roman law, from Latin amicus “friend,” ultimately from amare “to love” (see Amy). In modern use “characterized by friendliness, free from hard feelings, peaceable, socially harmonious.” Compare amiable, which is the same word through French. Related: Amicableness.

mid-15c., “wishing to do good, well-disposed, kindly,” from Old French benivolent and directly from Latin benevolentem (nominative benevolens) “wishing (someone) well, benevolent,” related to benevolentia “good feeling,” from bene “well” (see bene-) + volentem (nominative volens) present participle of velle “to wish” (see will (v.)). Related: Benevolently.

late 14c., “observation as the source of knowledge; actual observation; an event which has affected one,” from Old French esperience “experiment, proof, experience” (13c.), from Latin experientia “a trial, proof, experiment; knowledge gained by repeated trials,” from experientem (nominative experiens) “experienced, enterprising, active, industrious,” present participle of experiri “to try, test,” from ex “out of” (see ex-) + peritus “experienced, tested,” from PIE *per-yo-, suffixed form of root *per- (3) “to try, risk.” Meaning “state of having done something and gotten handy at it” is from late 15c.

1520s, from Latin promulgatus, past participle of promulgare “make publicly known, propose openly, publish,” perhaps altered from provulgare, from pro “forth” (see pro-) + vulgare “make public, publish.” Or the second element might be from mulgere “to milk” (see milk (n.)), used metaphorically for “cause to emerge;” “a picturesque farmers’ term used originally of squeezing the milk from the udder” [L.R. Palmer, “The Latin Language”]. Related: Promulgated; promulgating. The earlier verb in English was promulge (late 15c.).

late 14c., “free choice, freedom to do as one chooses,” also “freedom from the bondage of sin,” from Old French liberte “freedom, liberty, free will” (14c., Modern French liberté), from Latin libertatem (nominative libertas) “civil or political freedom, condition of a free man; absence of restraint; permission,” from liber “free” (see liberal (adj.)). At first of persons; of communities, “state of being free from arbitrary, despotic, or autocratic rule or control” is from late 15c.

The French notion of liberty is political equality; the English notion is personal independence. [William R. Greg, “France in January 1852” in “Miscellaneous Essays”]

Nautical sense of “leave of absence” is from 1758. Meaning “unrestrained action, conduct, or expression” (1550s) led to take liberties “go beyond the bounds of propriety” (1620s). Sense of “privileges by grant” (14c.) led to sense of “a person’s private land” (mid-15c.), within which certain special privileges may be exercised, which yielded in 18c. in both England and America a sense of “a district within a county but having its own justice of the peace,” and also “a district adjacent to a city and in some degree under its municipal jurisdiction” (as in Northern Liberties of Philadelphia). Also compare Old French libertés “local rights, laws, taxes.”

Liberty-cap is from 1803; the American Revolutionary liberty-pole, “tall flagstaff set up in honor of liberty and often surmounted by a liberty-cap” is from 1775. Liberty-cabbage was a World War I U.S. jingoistic euphemism for sauerkraut.

early 14c., “quality of being equal or fair, impartiality in dealing with others,” from Old French equite (13c.), from Latin aequitatem (nominative aequitas) “equality, uniformity, conformity, symmetry; fairness, equal rights; kindness, moderation,” from aequus “even, just, equal” (see equal (adj.)). As the name of a system of law, 1590s, from Roman naturalis aequitas, the general principles of justice which corrected or supplemented the legal codes.

early 14c., from Old French austere “strict, severe, harsh, cruel” (13c., Modern French austère) and directly from Latin austerus “dry, harsh, sour, tart,” from Greek austeros “bitter, harsh,” especially “making the tongue dry” (originally used of fruits, wines), metaphorically “austere, harsh,” from PIE root *saus- “dry” (see sere (adj.)).

From late 14c. as “severe, rigid;” 1590s as “unadorned, simple in style, without luxuries;” 1660s as “grave, sober.” Classical literal sense “sour, harsh” (1540s) is rare in English. Related: Austerely; austereness

mid-14c., “sternness, harshness,” from Old French austerite “harshness, cruelty” (14c.) and directly from Late Latin austeritatem (nominative austeritas), from austerus “severe, rigid,” a figurative use, in classical Latin “harsh, sour” (see austere). From 1580s as “severe self-discipline, ascetic practices;” hence “severe simplicity, absence of adornment or luxuries,” applied during World War II to national policies limiting non-essentials as a wartime economy.