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Origin and history of leisured

leisured(adj.)

of persons, "having ample leisure, not occupied with business," 1794, from leisure (n.). A verb leisure is not attested until 20c. and is rare. Phrase leisured class attested by 1836.

also from 1794

Entries linking to leisured

leisure(n.)

c. 1300, leisir, "free time, time at one's disposal," also (early 14c.) "opportunity to do something, chance, occasion, an opportune time," also "lack of hurry," from Old French leisir, variant of loisir "capacity, ability, freedom (to do something); permission; spare time; free will; idleness, inactivity," noun use of infinitive leisir "be permitted," from Latin licere "to be allowed" (see licence (n.)).

Especially "opportunity afforded by freedom from necessary occupations" (late 14c.). "In Fr. the word has undergone much the same development of sense as in Eng." [OED]. The -u- appeared 16c., probably on analogy of pleasure (n.), etc. To do something at leisure "without haste, with deliberation" (late 14c.) preserves the older sense. To do something at (one's) leisure "when one has time" is from mid-15c.

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    social
    The sense of "of or concerned with fashionable society and the leisured class" is from 1873....
    class
    c. 1600, "group of students," in U.S. especially "number of pupils in a school or college of the same grade," from French classe (14c.), from Latin classis "a class, a division; army, fleet," especially "any one of the six orders into which Servius Tullius divided the Roman peopl
    scrutiny
    early 15c., "the formal enumerating of the votes in an election to an office or dignity" (according to OED, "Now chiefly in Canon Law"), from Late Latin scrutinium "a search, inquiry" (in Medieval Latin, "a mode of election by ballot"), from Latin scrutari "to examine, investigat
    fiasco
    1855, theater slang for "a failure in performance;" by 1862 it had acquired the general sense of "any ignominious failure or dismal flop," on or off the stage. It comes via the French phrase faire fiasco "turn out a failure" (19c.), from Italian far fiasco "suffer a complete brea
    reciprocal
    1570s, "existing on both sides, exclusive or interchangeable" (of duties, etc.), with -al (1) + stem of Latin reciprocus "returning the same way, alternating," from pre-Latin *reco-proco-, from *recus (from re- "back;" see re-, + -cus, adjective formation) + *procus (from pro- "f
    odd
    c. 1300, odde, "constituting a unit in excess of an even number," from Old Norse oddi "third or additional number," as in odda-maðr "third man, odd man (who gives the casting vote)," odda-tala "odd number." The literal meaning of Old Norse oddi is "point of land, angle" (related
    th
    A sound found chiefly in words of Old English, Old Norse or Greek origin, unpronounceable by Normans and many other Europeans. In Greek, the sound corresponds etymologically to Sanskrit -dh- and English -d-; and it was represented graphically by -TH- and at first pronounced as a
    pomp
    c. 1300, "ostentation and display," especially on parade, from Old French pompe "pomp, magnificence" (13c.) and directly from Latin pompa "procession, pomp," from Greek pompē "solemn procession, display, escort," literally "a sending," from pempein "to send," which is of unknown
    occult
    1530s, "secret, not divulged," from French occulte and directly from Latin occultus "hidden, concealed, secret," past participle of occulere "cover over, conceal," from assimilated form of ob "over" (see ob-) + a verb related to celare "to hide" (from PIE root *kel- (1) "to cover
    quench
    Middle English quenchen, "to extinguish, put out" (heat, light, fire, also of desire, hunger, thirst), also figurative, "to bring to naught, eliminate, render ineffectual" (c. 1200), Old English acwencan "to quench" (of fire, light), from Proto-Germanic *kwenkjanan, probably a ca

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