Wordwyrt

compass

/ˈkʌmpəs/KUHM-puhs
/ˈkʌmpəs/KUHM-puhs

Meaninga circle

Common meaning: a direction-finding tool

‘with, together’ + ‘to undergo, put up with’ → compass

Journey through time

  • com — Latin com- “with, together; thoroughly” (path traced)
  • pass — Latin patior, passus “to undergo, put up with” (path traced)

Parts join in Late Latin as compassus.

  1. Latincom- + passws‘with, together; thoroughly + to undergo, put up with’source
  2. Late Latincompassus‘a circle, circuit’source
  3. Middle Englishcompassource
  4. Englishmeaning shiftsa circle, circuit → a direction-finding toolcompass‘a direction-finding tool’ · today

Sources & notes

Meaning: “Meaning” is the sense that emerges from the word’s roots; “Common meaning” is today’s everyday sense. Both written by us.

Pronunciation

  • UK IPA: converted from the US form by rule (unchecked). Respelling: generated.
  • No UK recording; the speaker uses your device’s en-GB voice.
  • US IPA: CMUdict (BSD-2), converted to IPA by rule. Respelling: generated.
  • No US recording; the speaker uses your device’s en-US voice.

Origin: Built on Late Latin compassus, which Skeat analyses as com- ‘with, together; thoroughly’ + passws ‘to undergo, put up with’.

Roots

Related words

compassion

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