The verb repair can mean to go or betake oneself to a place. This meaning is distinct from the more common meaning of 'to fix' and comes from Latin words meaning 'to go home again'.
Repair (verb) can mean to go or betake oneself somewhere. This differs from the more common meaning of 'fix,' and originates from Latin words meaning 'to go home again.'
| Word | repair |
|---|---|
| Date | December 5, 2015 |
| Type | verb |
| Syllables | rih-PAIR |
| Etymology | We are all familiar with the verb repair used as a synonym of fix. But today's word, while it is a homograph and a homophone of the more familiar repair, is a slightly older and unrelated verb. Repair, the synonym of fix, comes via Anglo-French from the Latin reparare, a combination of the re- prefix and parare ("prepare"). Repair, the synonym of go (which in English also once meant "to return"), has Anglo-French and Latin roots too, but makes its way back to the Late Latin repatriare (which means "to go home again" and is a source of the English repatriate). Repatriare combines the re- prefix with patria, the Latin word for "native country." |
| Examples | "… so we repaired to a publick-house, took a friendly glass, and thus parted." — Peter Drake, Amiable Renegade: The Memoirs of Captain Peter Drake, 1671–1753, 1960 "… Warren repaired to the dining alcove off the kitchen … and ate dinner with Nina and the children, discussing their schoolwork and events of the day." — Kevin Starr, Embattled Dreams, 2002 |
| Definition | 1 : to betake oneself : go 2 : to come together : rally |
Tags: wordoftheday::verb
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