etymonline logo
  • Columns
  • Forum
  • Apps
  • Premium
ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ
logologo

Quick and reliable accounts of the origin and history of English words. Scholarly, yet simple.

About

  • Who Did This
  • Sources
  • Introduction
  • Links

Support

  • Premium
  • Patreon
  • Donate with PayPal
  • Merch

Apps

Terms of ServicesPrivacy Policy
© 2001 - 2026 Douglas Harper
Advertisement

Want to remove ads? Log in to see fewer ads, and become a Premium Member to remove all ads.

Origin and history of perseverate

perseverate(v.)

"repeat a response after the cessation of the original stimulus," by 1909, in psychology, a back-formation from perseveration. Related: Perseverating; perseverative.

also from 1909

Entries linking to perseverate

perseveration(n.)

late 14c., perseveracioun "will to persevere;" early 15c., "duration, quality of persisting," from Old French perseveracion "persistence, stubbornness" (13c.) and directly from Latin perseverationem (nominative perseveratio), noun of action from past-participle stem of perseverare "continue steadfastly, persist" (see persevere). Psychological sense (1903) is from German (see perseverate).

    Advertisement

    Want to remove ads? Log in to see fewer ads, and become a Premium Member to remove all ads.

    More to explore

    repeat
    late 14c., repēten "to say what one has already said," from Old French repeter "say or do again, get back, demand the return of" (13c., Modern French répéeter) and directly from Latin repetere "do or say again; attack again," from re- "again" (see re-) + petere "to go to; attack;
    reiterate
    early 15c., reiteraten, "to repeat (an action or process) again and again," originally in medicine and alchemy, from Late Latin reiteratus, past participle of reiterare "to repeat," from re- "again" (see re-) + iterare "to repeat," from iterum "again" (see iteration). From mid-16
    game
    c. 1200, from Old English gamen "joy, fun; game, amusement," common Germanic (cognates: Old Frisian game "joy, glee," Old Norse gaman "game, sport; pleasure, amusement," Old Saxon gaman, Old High German gaman "sport, merriment," Danish gamen, Swedish gamman "merriment"), said to
    daffodil
    1540s, "asphodel," a variant of Middle English affodill "asphodel" (c. 1400), from Medieval Latin affodillus, from Latin asphodelus, from Greek asphodelos, which is of unknown origin. The initial d- is perhaps from merging of the article in Dutch de affodil, the Netherlands being
    protocol
    mid-15c., prothogol, "prologue;" 1540s, prothogall, "draft of a document, minutes of a transaction or negotiation, original of any writing" (senses now obsolete), from French prothocole (c. 1200, Modern French protocole), from Medieval Latin protocollum "draft," literally "the fi
    contentment
    mid-15c., contentement, "satisfactory payment" (of a debt; a sense now obsolete), from Old French contentment, from contenter (see content (v.)). Meaning "That happiness which consists in being satisfied with present conditions" is from 1590s. Contentment is passive; satisfactio
    edifice
    late 14c., from Old French edifice "building" (12c.), from Latin aedificium "building," from aedificare "to erect a building," from aedis, variant of aedes "temple, sanctuary," usually a single edifice without partitions, also, in the plural, "dwelling house, building," originall
    crucial
    1706, "cross-shaped, having the form of an X," from French crucial, a medical term for ligaments of the interior of the knee-joint (which cross each other), from Latin crux (genitive crucis) "cross" (see crux). The meaning "decisive, critical, finally disproving one of two altern
    awkward
    mid-14c. (adv.), "in the wrong direction," from awk "back-handed" + adverbial suffix -weard (see -ward). The original sense is obsolete. As an adjective, "turned the wrong way," 1510s. The meaning "clumsy, wanting ease and grace in movement" is recorded by 1520s. Of persons, "emb
    companion
    c. 1300, "one who accompanies or associates with another," from Old French compagnon "fellow, mate, friend, partner" (12c.), from Late Latin companionem (nominative companio), literally "bread fellow, messmate," from Latin com "with, together" (see com-) + panis "bread," from PIE

    Share perseverate

    Page URL:
    HTML Link:
    APA Style:
    Chicago Style:
    MLA Style:
    IEEE Style:
    Advertisement

    Want to remove ads? Log in to see fewer ads, and become a Premium Member to remove all ads.

    Trending
    Dictionary entries near perseverate
    • Persephone
    • Persepolis
    • Perseus
    • perseverance
    • perseverant
    • perseverate
    • perseveration
    • persevere
    • Persia
    • Persian
    • persiflage
    Advertisement

    Want to remove ads? Log in to see fewer ads, and become a Premium Member to remove all ads.

    Want to remove ads? Log in to see fewer ads, and become a Premium Member to remove all ads.