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Origin and history of amuse

amuse(v.)

late 15c., "to divert the attention, beguile, delude," from Old French amuser "fool, tease, hoax, entrap; make fun of," literally "cause to muse" (as a distraction), from a "at, to" (from Latin ad, but here probably a causal prefix) + muser "ponder, stare fixedly" (see muse (v.)).

The original English senses are obsolete; the meaning "divert from serious business, tickle the fancy of" is recorded from 1630s, but through 18c. the primary meaning was "deceive, cheat" by first occupying the attention. "The word was not in reg. use bef. 1600, and was not used by Shakespere" [OED]. Bemuse retains more of the original meaning. Greek amousos meant "without Muses," hence "uneducated."

also from late 15c.

Entries linking to amuse

bemuse(v.)

"make utterly confused, put into a state of musing or reverie, muddle, stupefy," by 1735, from be- "make, cause" + muse (v.) "be absorbed in thought." Attested from 1735 but probably older, as Pope (1705) punned, on it, unetymologically, as "devoted utterly to the Muses." Compare amuse.

muse(v.)

"to reflect, ponder, meditate; to be absorbed in thought," mid-14c., from Old French muser (12c.) "to ponder, dream, wonder; loiter, waste time," which is of uncertain origin; the explanation in Diez and Skeat is literally "to stand with one's nose in the air" (or, possibly, "to sniff about" like a dog who has lost the scent), from muse "muzzle," from Gallo-Roman *musa "snout," itself a word of unknown origin. The modern word probably has been influenced in sense by muse (n.). Related: Mused; musing.

  • amusable
  • amused
  • amusement
  • amusing
  • beguile
  • See All Related Words (7)
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More to explore

amusement
1640s, "diversion of attention," especially in military actions, from French amusement, noun of action from amuser (see amuse). And because all bold and irreverent Speeches touching matters of high nature, and all malicious and false Reports tending to Sedition, or to the Amusem
divert
early 15c., diverten, "change the direction or course of; change the aim or destination of, turn aside or away" (transitive), from Old French divertir (14c.) and directly from Latin divertere "to turn in different directions," blended with devertere "turn aside," from vertere "to
disport
late 14c., disporten, "to divert (from sadness or ennui), cheer, amuse gaily," from Anglo-French disporter "divert, amuse," Old French desporter "to seek amusement," literally "carry away" (the mind from serious matters), from des- "away" (see dis-) + porter "to carry," from Lati
sport
c. 1400, sporten, "take pleasure, enjoy or amuse oneself," from Old French desporter, deporter "to divert, amuse, please,...The restricted sense of "amuse oneself by active exercise in open air or taking part in some game" is from late 15c....
solace
"to comfort (someone), console in grief or trouble," late 13c., solasen, also in Middle English "entertain, amuse, please...
regale
Influenced in Old French by se rigoler "amuse oneself, rejoice," a word of unknown origin....
dally
to speak seriously, commune;" late 14c., "to talk intimately, converse politely," possibly from Anglo-French dalier "to amuse...
cheer
c. 1200, "the face, countenance," especially as expressing emotion, from Anglo-French chere "the face," Old French chiere "face, countenance, look, expression," from Late Latin cara "face" (source also of Spanish cara), possibly from Greek kara "head" (from PIE root *ker- (1) "ho
convulse
1640s, "to shake or disturb by violent, irregular action" (transitive); 1680s, "to draw or contract spasmodically or involuntarily" (intransitive); from Latin convulsus, past participle of convellere (transitive only) "to pull away, to pull this way and that, wrench," hence "to w
entertain
late 15c., "to keep up, maintain, to keep (someone) in a certain frame of mind," from Old French entretenir "hold together, stick together, support" (12c.), from entre- "among" (from Latin inter; see inter-) + tenir "to hold" (from Latin tenere, from PIE root *ten- "to stretch").

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