estimar

Forms

estimar (first-person singular present estimo, first-person singular preterite estimei, past participle estimado)^[1]

Etymology

It is borrowed from Latin aestimō (“to set a price on; to value; to judge”).^[2][3][1] Houaiss calls it a semi-learned word, while Wiktionary treats it as a learned borrowing that displaced the inherited esmar.^[2][1] Cunha glosses it “to assess, calculate”, dates it to the 14th century (Old Galician-Portuguese osmar in the 13th) and calls it the popular form of the same Latin verb.^[3] Spanish estimar is likewise taken from Latin, while the old popular Old Spanish asmar comes from Vulgar Latin *adaestimō.^[4][5]

The Latin verb had the Old Latin form aestumō, and its origin is uncertain.^[6][1] The usual analysis as aes (“bronze”) with a second part meaning “cut” does not convince de Vaan; he finds a link with Proto-Indo-European *h₂eys- (“to seek”), seen in aeruscō (“to beg”), more likely.^[6][1]

Earliest recorded meaning

Lorenzo's earliest record is a charter of 1264: estimarse a renda dese ãno a mandado de dous oméés bous “let that year's rent be assessed by order of two good men”.^[7] A satirical cantiga of Roi Paez de Ribela uses it in the same sense of judging or reckoning: non poderá estimar ben / se x' este carne, se pescaz “he will not be able to tell well whether this is meat or fish”.^[7]

Semantic evolution

The first sense, to set a value on, survives in “to estimate”.^[8] Nascentes, after Pacheco Júnior, calls it the etymological meaning.^[8][2] Bluteau's first gloss is already fazer caso, to make much of someone or something.^[9] Morais in 1813 puts this sense first (estimo muito o amigo), then “to assess” and “to reckon with, fear”, as in estimar o perigo.^[10] Figueiredo marks “to suppose, fearing” as old.^[11]

From esteem the verb passed to affection between people and to the sense “to be glad of”, and in letters estimar expresses a wish for someone's welfare.^[2][12] Sailors use it for working out a ship's position by reckoning, fazer a estima.^[2][13]

Timeline

• 1264 – estimarse a renda in a charter.^[7]
• 1431–1446 – first record in the CTA, in the Vida do honrado Infante Josafat.^[14]
• 15th century – first record of estimador.^[3]
• 1569 – Cardoso renders Estimar as Latin aestimo.^[15]
• 1712 – Bluteau glosses it fazer caso.^[9]
• 1813 – Morais gives the senses “to esteem”, “to assess” and “to fear”.^[10]
• 1899 – Figueiredo marks the sense “to suppose, fearing” as old.^[11]

Meanings

Verb

1. To estimate, to calculate approximately: Os técnicos estimam que a ponte fique pronta em dois anos.^[2][12]
2. To assess the price or value of: estimar uma casa em duzentos mil euros.^[2][16]
3. To reckon with, foresee (a danger, a difficulty).^[2][10]
4. (nautical) To work out a ship's position or course by dead reckoning.^[2][13]
5. To esteem, value, prize.^[16] (reflexive) to value oneself.^[2][16]
6. To be fond of.^[17] (reflexive) to be fond of each other: Os dois irmãos estimam-se muito.^[2][17]
7. To be glad of, take pleasure in.^[2][13]
8. To judge, reckon, conjecture from the evidence.^[2][12]
9. To wish, hope for (someone's welfare).^[2][12]

Word family

• desestimar
• estima
• estimação
• estimador
• estimativa
• estimativo
• estimável
• inestimável
• subestimar
• superestimar
• sobrestimar

Related words

• esmar
• esmo
• Latin aestimō
• Spanish estimar

References

1. ^ a b c d e f g h i Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n Houaiss, Antônio; Villar, Mauro de Salles (2001), Dicionário Houaiss da língua portuguesa, Rio de Janeiro: Objetiva, p. s.v. estimar
3. ^ a b c Cunha, Antônio Geraldo da (2010), Dicionário etimológico da língua portuguesa, 4th ed., Rio de Janeiro: Lexikon, p. s.v. estimar
4. ^ Corominas, Joan; Pascual, José A. (1980–1991), Diccionario crítico etimológico castellano e hispánico, 6 vols., Madrid: Gredos, p. 2, 789
5. ^ Real Academia Española; Asociación de Academias de la Lengua Española (2014–), Diccionario de la lengua española, 23rd ed., online version 23.8, https://dle.rae.es, p. s.v. asmar
6. ^ a b de Vaan, Michiel (2008), Etymological Dictionary of Latin and the other Italic Languages, Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series 7, Leiden; Boston: Brill
7. ^ a b c Instituto da Lingua Galega, Dicionario de dicionarios do galego medieval (DDGM), ed. Ernesto González Seoane, Santiago de Compostela: Universidade de Santiago de Compostela, https://ilg.usc.gal/ddgm, p. s.v. estimar
8. ^ a b Nascentes, Antenor (1955), Dicionário etimológico da língua portuguesa, vol. 1: Nomes comuns, Rio de Janeiro (1st ed. 1932, preface by W. Meyer-Lübke), p. 198
9. ^ a b Bluteau, Raphael (1712–1728), Vocabulario portuguez e latino, 8 vols. + 2 supplement vols., Coimbra / Lisboa (CLP transcription, Universidade de Aveiro), p. s.v. estimar
10. ^ a b c Silva, António de Morais (1813), Diccionario da lingua portugueza, 2nd ed., 2 vols., Lisboa: Typographia Lacerdina, p. 1, 776
11. ^ a b Figueiredo, Cândido de (1899), Novo diccionário da língua portuguesa, 1st ed., 2 vols., Lisboa: Tavares Cardoso & Irmão, p. 568
12. ^ a b c d Academia das Ciências de Lisboa, Dicionário da Língua Portuguesa, revised online edition (2023–) of the Dicionário da Língua Portuguesa Contemporânea (2001), https://dicionario.acad-ciencias.pt, p. s.v. estimar
13. ^ a b c Dicionário Priberam da Língua Portuguesa, Lisboa: Priberam Informática, https://dicionario.priberam.org, p. s.v. estimar
14. ^ Centro de Linguística da Universidade de Lisboa, CTA – Corpus de Textos Antigos, https://teitok.clul.ul.pt/cta, p. s.v. estimar
15. ^ Cardoso, Jerónimo (1569–1570), Dictionarium ex lusitanico in latinum sermonem, Lisboa: João Álvares (CLP transcription, Universidade de Aveiro), p. s.v. estimar
16. ^ a b c Ferreira, Aurélio Buarque de Holanda, Novo dicionário Aurélio da língua portuguesa, digital edition, p. s.v. estimar
17. ^ a b Aulete, Francisco Júlio Caldas, Dicionário contemporâneo da língua portuguesa (1st ed. 1881), online as Aulete Digital, Rio de Janeiro: Lexikon, https://aulete.com.br, p. s.v. estimar