quword 趣词
Word Origins Dictionary
- porphyrite (n.)



[porphyrite 词源字典] - 1796 as a modern mineral name, from porphyry + -ite (2). Related: Porphyritic.[porphyrite etymology, porphyrite origin, 英语词源]
- porphyry (n.)




- type of ornamental stone, late 14c., porfurie, from Old French porfire, from Italian porfiro and in some cases directly from Latin porphyrites, a purple semi-precious stone quarried near the Red Sea in Egypt, from Greek porphyrites (lithos) "the purple (stone)," from porphyra (n.) "purple, purple dye" (see purple). Spelling Latinized mid-15c. Now used generally for a type of igneous rock without regard to color. Porphyrios was an ancient proper name.
- porpoise (n.)




- early 14c., porpas, from Old French porpais (12c.) "porpoise," literally "pork fish," from porc "pork" (see pork (n.)) + peis "fish," from Latin piscis "fish" (see fish (n.)).
The Old French word probably is a loan-translation of a Germanic word meaning literally "sea-hog, mere-swine," such as Old Norse mar-svin, Old High German meri-swin, Middle Dutch mereswijn "porpoise" (the last of which also was borrowed directly into French and became Modern French marsouin).
Classical Latin had a similar name, porculus marinus (in Pliny), and the notion behind the name likely is a fancied resemblance of the snout to that of a pig. - porridge (n.)




- 1530s, porage "soup of meat and vegetables," alteration of pottage, perhaps from influence of Middle English porray, porreie "leek broth," from Old French poree "leek soup," from Vulgar Latin *porrata, from Latin porrum "leek." Spelling with -idge attested from c. 1600. Association with oatmeal is 1640s, first in Scottish.
- porringer (n.)




- late 15c., alteration of potynger, potager "small dish for stew," from Middle English potage (see pottage) by the same course of changes that produced porridge; and with intrusive -n- by 1530s (compare passenger).
- port (n.1)




- "harbor," Old English port "harbor, haven," reinforced by Old French port "harbor, port; mountain pass;" Old English and Old French words both from Latin portus "port, harbor," originally "entrance, passage," figuratively "place of refuge, asylum," from PIE *prtu- "a going, a passage," from root *per- (2) "to lead, pass over" (cognates: Sanskrit parayati "carries over;" Greek poros "journey, passage, way," peirein "to pierce, run through;" Latin porta "gate, door," portare "passage," peritus "experienced;" Avestan peretush "passage, ford, bridge;" Armenian hordan "go forward;" Welsh rhyd "ford;" Old Church Slavonic pariti "to fly;" Old English faran "to go, journey," Old Norse fjörðr "inlet, estuary").
Meaning "left side of a ship" (looking forward from the stern) is attested from 1540s, from notion of "the side facing the harbor" (when a ship is docked). It replaced larboard in common usage to avoid confusion with starboard; officially so by Admiralty order of 1844 and U.S. Navy Department notice of 1846. Figurative sense "place of refuge" is attested from early 15c.; phrase any port in a storm first recorded 1749. A port of call (1810) is one paid a scheduled visit by a ship. - port (n.2)




- "gateway," Old English port "portal, door, gate, entrance," from Old French porte "gate, entrance," from Latin porta "city gate, gate; door, entrance," from PIE root *per- (see port (n.1)). Specific meaning "porthole, opening in the side of a ship" is attested from c. 1300.
- port (n.3)




- "bearing, mien," c. 1300, from Old French port, from porter "to carry," from Latin portare (see port (n.1)).
- port (n.4)




- type of sweet dark-red wine, 1690s, shortened from Oporto, city in northwest Portugal from which the wine originally was shipped to England; from O Porto "the port;" (see port (n.1)).
- port (v.)




- "to carry," from Middle French porter, from Latin portare "to carry" (see port (n.1)). Related: Ported; porting.
- port-wine (n.)




- 1700, from port (n.4) + wine (n.).
- portable (adj.)




- early 15c., from French portable "that can be carried," from Late Latin portabilis "that can be carried," from Latin portare "to carry" (see port (n.1)). Related: Portability.
- portage (n.)




- early 15c., "action of carrying," said to be from Old French portage, Medieval Latin portaticum, though the meaning of these was "tax paid on entering a town," from Latin portare "to carry" (see port (n.1)). Sense of "carrying of boats from one navigable water to another" is from 1690s, reinforced in Canadian French.
- portal (n.)




- late 14c., "gate, gateway," from Old French portal "gate" (Modern French portail) and directly from Medieval Latin portale "city gate, porch," from neuter of portalis (adj.) "of a gate," from Latin porta "gate" (see port (n.1)).
- portcullis (n.)




- also port-cullis, c. 1300, from Old French porte coleice "sliding gate" (c. 1200, Modern French porte à coulisse), from porte "gate" (see port (n.2)) + coleice "sliding, flowing," fem. of coleis, from Latin colatus, past participle of colare "to filter, strain" (see colander).
- Porte (n.)




- "Ottoman court at Constantinople," c. 1600, from French, in full, la Sublime Porte, literally "the high gate," translation of Arabic al-Bab al-'Ali, "lofty gate," official name of the central office of the Ottoman government (compare Vatican for "the Papacy," White House for "the United States"). Compare also mikado. Supposedly a reference to the ancient custom of holding royal audience in the doorway of a king's palace or tent.
- porte-cochere (n.)




- gateway for carriages, 1690s, from French porte-cochère, from porte "gate" (see port (n.2)) + cochère, fem. adjective from coche "coach" (see coach (n.)).
- portend (v.)




- early 15c., from Latin portendere "foretell, reveal; point out, indicate," originally "to stretch forward," from por- (variant of pro-; see pro-) "forth, forward" + tendere "to stretch, extend" (see tenet). Related: Portended; portending.
- portent (n.)




- 1560s, from Middle French portente, from Latin portentum "a sign, token, omen; monster, monstrosity," noun use of neuter of portentus, past participle of portendre (see portend).
- portentous (adj.)




- 1540s, from Latin portentosus "monstrous, marvelous, threatening," from portentem "portent" (see portend). Related: Portentously.