Wordwyrt

disport

Meaningto carry

Common meaning: enjoy oneself or play

‘apart, away’ + ‘to carry, to bear’ → disport

Journey through time

Hybrid: Latin + Old French Its parts come from different languages; the combined form first appears in our sources in Latin.

  • dis — Latin dis- “apart, away” (path traced)
  • port — Old French porter “to carry, to bear” (path traced)

Parts join in Latin as portare.

  1. Latindis- + porter‘apart, away + to carry, to bear’source
  2. Latinportare‘to carry’source
  3. Old Frenchmeaning shiftsto carry → amuse or divert oneselfdesporter‘amuse or divert oneself’source
  4. Middle Englishdisporten‘amuse oneself’source
  5. Englishdisport‘enjoy oneself or play’ · 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: not available. Respelling: generated.
  • US IPA: not available. Respelling: generated.

Origin: Built on Latin portare, which Skeat analyses as dis- ‘apart, away’ + porter ‘to carry, to bear’.

Did you know: our wording, based on Skeat, Etymological Dictionary (1898), entry DISPORT, p. 172 · dictionary scan

Roots

  • portare Latin “to carry”
  • porter Old French “to carry, to bear”

Related words

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