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Origin and history of cere

cere(n.)

"wax," late 15c., from French cire "wax" (12c.), from Latin cera "wax, wax seal, wax writing tablet," related to Greek kēros "beeswax," which is of unknown origin, perhaps a non-IE word. As a verb, "to wax, cover with wax" (cloth, for waterproofing), late 14c., from Latin cerare, from cera. Related: Cered.

also from late 15c.

Entries linking to cere

ceraceous(adj.)

"waxy, having the texture or color of new wax," 1738, from Latin cera "wax" (see cere (n.)) + -aceous.

ceruse(n.)

late 14c., "white lead; a mixture or compound of hydrate and carbonate of lead, produced by exposing in thin plates to the vapor of vinegar" [Century Dictionary], from Old French ceruse, from Latin cerussa, "white lead." It is perhaps ultimately from a Greek or Latin word meaning "white wax" (see cere.)

The term also was applied generally to white pigments made from other ingredients, as in Trevisa's translation of Bartolomaeus: "Merours beþ y tempered wiþ tyn and white colour þat hatte cerusa. Cerusa is y made of tyn as it is y made of leed."

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bake
Old English bacan "to bake, to cook by dry heat in a closed place or on a heated surface," from Proto-Germanic *bakan "to bake" (source also of Old Norse baka, Middle Dutch backen, Old High German bahhan, German backen), from PIE *bheg- (source also of Greek phogein "to roast"),
beak
mid-13c., "bird's bill," from Old French bec "beak," figuratively "mouth," also "tip or point of a nose, a lance, a ship, or a shoe," from Late Latin beccus (source also of Italian becco, Spanish pico), by the Romans said to be of Gaulish origin, perhaps from Gaulish beccus, and
warp
"to bend, twist, distort," Old English weorpan "to throw, throw away, hit with a missile," from Proto-Germanic *werpanan "to fling by turning the arm" (source also of Old Saxon werpan, Old Norse verpa "to throw," Swedish värpa "to lay eggs," Old Frisian werpa, Middle Low German a
wrap
early 14c., wrappen, "to wind (something around something else), cover (something), conceal; bind up, swaddle; fold (something) up or back on itself," of uncertain origin, perhaps via Scandinavian (compare Danish dialectal vravle "to wind"), from PIE *werp- "to turn, wind," from
bill
[written statement] late 14c., "formal document; formal plea or charge (in a court of law); personal letter," from Anglo-French bille, Anglo-Latin billa "a writing, a list, a seal," from Medieval Latin bulla "decree, seal, sealed document," in classical Latin "bubble, boss, stud,
bin
"enclosed receptacle for some commodity," Old English binne "basket, manger, crib," a word of uncertain origin. Probably from Gaulish, from Old Celtic *benna, and akin to Welsh benn "a cart," especially one with a woven wicker body. The same Celtic word seems to be preserved in I
fringe
early 14c., "ornamental bordering; material for a fringe," from Old French frenge "thread, strand, fringe, hem, border" (early 14c.), from Vulgar Latin *frimbia, metathesis of Late Latin fimbria, from Latin fimbriae (plural) "fibers, threads, fringe," which is of uncertain origin
etiquette
1750, from French étiquette "prescribed behavior," from Old French estiquette "label, ticket" (see ticket (n.)). The sense development in French perhaps is from small cards written or printed with instructions for how to behave properly at court (compare Italian etichetta, Spanis
challenge
early 14c., chalenge, "something one can be accused of, a fault, blemish;" mid-14c., "false accusation, malicious charge; accusation of wrong-doing," also "act of laying claim" (to something), from Anglo-French chalenge, Old French chalonge "calumny, slander; demand, opposition,"
hustle
1680s (trans.), "to shake to and fro" (especially of money in a cap, as part of a game called hustle-cap), metathesized from Dutch hutselen, husseln "to shake, to toss," frequentative of hutsen, variant of hotsen "to shake." "The stems hot-, hut- appear in a number of formations

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