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Origin and history of confutation

confutation(n.)

"act of disproving or proving to be false," mid-15c., from Latin confutationem (nominative confutatio), noun of action from past-participle stem of confutare "repress, check; disprove, restrain, silence," from assimilated form of com-, here perhaps an intensive prefix (see con-), + *futare "to beat," which is perhaps from PIE root *bhau- "to strike." Confutation of the person in logic is argument ad hominem.

also from mid-15c.

Entries linking to confutation

*bhau-

Proto-Indo-European root meaning "to strike."

It might form all or part of: abut; baste (v.3) "beat with a stick, thrash;" battledore; beat; beetle (n.2) "heavy wooden mallet;" botony; boutonniere; butt (n.1) "thick end;" butt (v.) "strike with the head;" buttocks; button; buttress; confute; halibut; rebut; refute; sackbut; turbot.

It might also be the source of: Latin *futare "to beat" (in compounds); Old English beadu "battle," beatan "to beat," bytl "hammer, mallet."

con-

word-forming element meaning "together, with," sometimes merely intensive; it is the form of com- used in Latin before consonants except -b-, -p-, -l-, -m-, or -r-. In native English formations (such as costar), co- tends to be used where Latin would use con-.

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