Origin and history of brainwashing

formerly also endoctrinate, 1620s, "to teach," formed as if from Latin (but there seems to have been no word *indoctrinare), perhaps modeled on French endoctriner or extended from earlier (now obsolete) verb indoctrine, endoctrine, "to instruct" (mid-15c.); see in- (2) "in" + doc

Old English swete, Mercian swoete, "pleasing to the senses, mind or feelings; having a pleasant disposition," from Proto-Germanic *swotja- (source also of Old Saxon swoti, Old Frisian swet, Swedish söt, Danish sød, Middle Dutch soete, Dutch zoet, Old High German swuozi, German sü

long-necked ruminant animal of Africa, 1590s, giraffa, from Italian giraffa, from Arabic zarafa, probably from an African language. Earlier Middle English spellings varied wildly, depending on the foreign source, and included jarraf, ziraph, and gerfauntz, some apparently directl

1640s, as a theological term (in reference to "covenants" between God and man), from French fédéral, an adjective formed from Latin foedus (genitive foederis) "covenant, league, treaty, alliance" (from PIE *bhoid-es-, suffixed form of root *bheidh- "to trust, confide, persuade").

early 15c., "a prompting" (a sense now obsolete), from Old French instinct (14c.) or directly from Latin instinctus "instigation, impulse, inspiration," noun use of past participle of instinguere "to incite, impel," from in- "into, in, on, upon" (from PIE root *en "in") + stingue

early 15c., crusible, "vessel or melting pot for chemical purposes, so tempered as to endure extreme heat," from Medieval Latin crucibulum "melting pot for metals," originally "night lamp." First element might be Middle High German kruse "earthen pot." Or perhaps it is from Latin

mid-14c., "constant and earnest effort to accomplish what is undertaken," from Old French diligence "attention, care; haste, speed" and directly from Latin diligentia "attentiveness, carefulness," from diligentem (nominative diligens) "attentive, assiduous, careful," present-part

"respiratory disorder characterized by paroxysms of labored breathing and a feeling of contraction in the chest," late 14c., asma, asma, from Latin asthma, from Greek asthma "shortness of breath, a panting," from azein "breathe hard," probably related to anemos "wind" (from PIE r

1540s, renegue, "deny, renounce, abandon" (archaic), from Medieval Latin renegare, from Latin re-, here perhaps an intensive prefix (see re-), + negare "to refuse" (from PIE root *ne- "not"). The meaning "change one's mind, go back on (one's word or promise)" is by 1784. OED iden

"wool coat of a sheep," Old English fleos, flies "fleece, wool, fur, sealskin," from West Germanic *flusaz (source also of Middle Dutch vluus, Dutch vlies, Middle High German vlius, German Vlies), which is of uncertain origin; probably from PIE *pleus- "to pluck," also "a feather