praeservo

Forms

praeservō (present infinitive praeservāre, perfect active praeservāvī, supine praeservātum); first conjugation^[1]

Etymology

It is from Latin prae (“before”) + servō (“to watch, keep”).^[2][1][3]

Earliest recorded meaning

Caelius Aurelianus (5th century AD)^[4] uses it in his work on acute diseases for observing a patient's way of life beforehand.^[5][6][7]

Semantic evolution

Hilary of Poitiers has it for keeping oneself free of other masters,^[5] and its participle for something preserved.^[7] The TLL notes that in Facundus the prefix has almost lost its force, so that it means little more than servō.^[2]

In Medieval Latin it took on the sense of keeping something in a certain state, preserving it, and of keeping someone safe from harm or danger.^[8] English preserve (late 14th century) comes from it through Anglo-French and Old French.^[3]

Timeline

• 5th century AD – Caelius Aurelianus uses it for observing beforehand.^[5][4]
• 1239 – A British letter speaks of being kept safe from mortal danger.^[8]
• 1288 – An Oxford formulary uses it for preserving a state of peace.^[8]
• late 14th century – English borrows it as preserve.^[3]

Meanings

Verb

1. (Late Latin) To observe or keep beforehand.^[5][6][1]
2. (Medieval Latin) To keep in a certain state, preserve.^[8][9]
3. (Medieval Latin) To keep safe, protect (from harm).^[8]

Related words

• servō
• English preserve

References

1. ^ a b c d e Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b Thesaurus linguae Latinae (1900–), Leipzig: Teubner; Berlin: De Gruyter; open-access ed., Munich: Bayerische Akademie der Wissenschaften
3. ^ a b c Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
4. ^ a b Köbler, Gerhard (2010), Lateinisches Abkunfts- und Wirkungswörterbuch für Altertum und Mittelalter, online ed., koeblergerhard.de
5. ^ a b c d Lewis, Charlton T.; Short, Charles (1879), A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
6. ^ a b Georges, Karl Ernst (1913–1918), Ausführliches lateinisch-deutsches Handwörterbuch, 8th ed., ed. Heinrich Georges, Hannover; Leipzig: Hahn
7. ^ a b Gaffiot, Félix (2016), Dictionnaire latin-français, new ed. by Gérard Gréco et al. (Gaffiot 2016), online ed.
8. ^ a b c d e Latham, R. E., D. R. Howlett, R. K. Ashdowne, et al. (1975–2013), Dictionary of Medieval Latin from British Sources, London: British Academy / Oxford University Press
9. ^ Stelten, Leo F. (1995), Dictionary of Ecclesiastical Latin, Peabody, Mass.: Hendrickson