Online Etymology Dictionary

seize: 1265, from O.Fr. seisir "to put in possession of, to take possession of," from L.L. sacire, generally held to be from a Gmc. source, perhaps from Frankish *sakjan "lay claim to" (cf. Goth. sokjan, O.E. secan "to seek;" see seek), or from P.Gmc. *satjan "to place" (see set (v.)). Originally a legal term in ref. to feudal property holdings or offices. Meaning "to grip with the hands or teeth" is from c.1300; that of "to take possession by force or capture" (of a city, etc.) is from 1338. Fig. use, with ref. to death, disease, fear, etc. is from c.1381. Meaning "to grasp with the mind" is attested from 1855. Of engines or other mechanisms, attested from 1878.
comprehend: mid-14c., "to grasp with the mind," from L. comprehendere "to take together, to unite; include; seize" (of catching fire or the arrest of criminals); also "to comprehend, perceive" (to seize or take in the mind), from com- "completely" + prehendere "to catch hold of, seize" (see prehensile).
ravish: c.1300, "to seize (someone) by violence, carry (a person, esp. a woman) away," from O.Fr. raviss-, prp. stem of ravir "to seize, take away hastily," from V.L. *rapire, from L. rapere "to seize, hurry away" (see rapid). Meaning "to commit rape upon" is recorded from mid-15c. Ravishing "act of plundering" is from c.1300; in the sense of "enchanting" it is attested from early 15c., from notion of "carrying off from earth to heaven" (early 14c.).
grab: 1589, from M.Du. or M.L.G. grabben "to grab," from P.Gmc. *grab (cf. O.H.G. garba "sheaf," lit. "that which is gathered up together"), from PIE *gherebh- "to seize" (cf. Skt. grbhnati "seizes," O.Pers. grab- "seize" as possession or prisoner, O.C.S. grabiti "to seize, rob," Lith. grebiu "to rake"). First record of grab-bag "miscellaneous mixture" is 1855, originally a carnival game.
apprehend: late 14c., "to grasp in the mind," from L. apprehendere "to take hold of, grasp," from ad- "to" + prehendere "to seize" (see prehensile). Metaphoric extension to "seize with the mind" took place in L., and was the sole sense of cognate O.Fr. aprendre (Mod.Fr. apprendre "to learn, to be informed about;" also cf. apprentice). Original sense returned in Eng. in meaning "to seize in the name of the law, arrest," recorded from 1540s, which use probably was taken directly from Latin.
rape (v.): late 14c., "seize prey, take by force," from Anglo-Fr. raper, O.Fr. raper "to seize, abduct," a legal term, from L. rapere "seize, carry off by force, abduct" (see rapid). L. rapere was used for "sexual violation," but only very rarely; the usual L. word being stuprum, lit. "disgrace." Sense of "sexual violation or ravishing of a woman" first recorded in Eng. as a noun, 1481 (the noun sense of "taking anything -- including a woman -- away by force" is from c.1400). The verb in this sense is from 1577. Rapist is from 1883.
hint: 1604, from obsolete hent, from O.E. hentan "to seize," from P.Gmc. *khantijanan (cf. Goth. hinþan "to seize"), related to hunt. Modern sense and spelling first attested in Shakespeare.
cop (v.): 1704, northern British dialect, "to seize, to catch," perhaps from M.Fr. caper "seize, to take," from L. capere "to take" (see capable); or from Du. kapen "to take," from O.Fris. capia "to buy."
reprehend: mid-14c., from L. reprehendere "seize, restrain," lit. "pull back," from re- "back" + prehendere "to grasp, seize" (see prehensile).
gripe: O.E. gripan "grasp at, lay hold," from P.Gmc. *gripanan (cf. O.S. gripan, O.N. gripa, Du. grijpen, Goth. greifen "to seize"), from PIE base *ghrib- (cf. Lith. griebiu "to seize"). Figurative sense of "complain, grouse" is first attested 1932, probably from earlier meaning "gripping pain in the bowels" (1601).
usurp: early 14c., from O.Fr. usurper, from L. usurpare "make use of, seize for use," in L.L. "to assume unlawfully," from usus "a use" (see use) + rapere "to seize" (see rapid).
latch (v.): O.E. læccan "to grasp or seize," from P.Gmc. *lakkijanan. Not found in other Gmc. languages; probably from PIE *(s)lagw- "to seize" (see analemma). The noun is first recorded 1331, from the verb. Latchkey (1825) is a key to draw back the latch of a door; latchkey child first recorded 1944, Amer.Eng., in ref. to children who come home from school while both parents are at work.
get: c.1200, from O.N. geta "to obtain, reach" (p.t. gatum, pp. getenn), from P.Gmc. *getan (cf. O.E. begietan "to beget," O.Swed. gissa "to guess," lit. "to try to get"), from PIE base *ghe(n)d- "seize" (cf. Gk. khandanein "to hold, contain," Lith. godetis "be eager," second element in L. prehendere "to grasp, seize," Welsh gannu "to hold, contain," O.C.S. gadati "to guess, suppose"). Meaning "to seize mentally, grasp" is from 1892. O.E., as well as Du. and Fris., had the root only in compounds (cf. beget, forget). Vestiges of O.E. cognate *gietan remain obliquely in pp. gotten and original pt. gat. The word and phrases built on it take up 29 columns in the OED 2nd edition. Slang get over "recover, rebound" is from 1687. Getaway "escape" is from 1852. Get-up "equipment or costume" is from 1847. Get-rich-quick (adj.) is from 1902. Get wind of "become acquainted with" is from 1840, from earlier to get wind "to get out, become known" (1722).
hunt: O.E. huntian "chase game," related to hentan "to seize," from P.Gmc. *khuntojan (cf. Goth. hinþan "to seize, capture," O.H.G. hunda "booty"), from PIE *kend-. General sense of "search diligently" (for anything) is first recorded c.1200. The noun meaning "body of persons associated for the purpose of hunting with a pack of hounds" is first recorded 1579. Happy hunting-grounds "Native American afterlife paradise" is from "Last of the Mohicans" (1826).
occupy: c.1340, "to take possession of," also "to take up space or time, employ (someone)," from O.Fr. occuper, from L. occupare "take over, seize, possess, occupy," from ob "over" + intensive form of capere "to grasp, seize" (see capable). During 16c.-17c. a euphemism for "have sexual intercourse with," which caused it to fall from polite usage.
"A captaine? Gods light these villaines wil make the word as odious as the word occupy, which was an excellent good worde before it was il sorted." [Doll Tearsheet in "2 Henry IV"]
analemma: 1650s, from L. analemma "the pedestal of a sundial," hence the sundial itself, from Gk. analemma "prop, support," from analambanein "to receive, take up, restore," from ana- "up" + lambanein "to take," from PIE base *(s)lagw- "to seize, take" (cf. Skt. labhate, rabhate "seizes;" O.E. læccan "to seize, grasp;" Gk. lazomai "I take, grasp;" O.C.S. leca "to catch, snare;" Lith. lobis "possession, riches").
seizure: "act of seizing," late 15c., from seize + -ure. Meaning "sudden attack of illness" is attested from 1779.
fungo: 1867, baseball slang, perhaps from dial. fonge "catch," a relic of O.E. fon "seize" (see fang), or possibly from the Ger. cognate fangen. Not in OED 2nd ed. (1989).
chase: c.1300, from O.Fr. chacier "to catch, seize," from V.L. *captiare (see catch). Meaning of "run after" developed c.1350.
prize (n.2): "something taken by force," late 14c., from O.Fr. prise "a taking, seizing, holding," prop. fem. pp. of prendre "to take, seize," from L. prendere, contraction of prehendere (see prehensile). Especially of ships captured at sea (1512).
attainder: "extinction of rights of a person sentenced to death or outlaw," mid-15c., from O.Fr. ataindre "to touch upon, strike, hit, seize, accuse, condemn" (see attain). O.Fr. infinitive used as a noun. Latin attingere had a wide range of meanings, including "to attack, to strike, to appropriate, to manage," all somehow suggested by the literal sense "to touch."
numb: mid-15c., nome, lit. "taken, seized," from pp. of nimen "to take, seize," from O.E. niman "to take" (see nimble). The extraneous -b (to conform to comb, limb, etc.) appeared 17c. The notion is of being "taken" with palsy, shock, and especially cold. The verb is from c.1600.
preoccupation: 1552, "state of occupying beforehand," from L. præoccupationem (nom. præoccupatio) "a seizing beforehand, anticipation," n. of action from from præoccupare, from præ- "before" + occupare "seize" (see occupy). Meaning "mental absorption" is from 1854.
ravenous: 1412, "obsessed with plundering, extremely greedy," from O.Fr. ravinos "rapacious, violent," from raviner "to seize," from ravine "violent rush, robbery" (see ravine). Meaning "voracious, very hungry" is from c.1430.
sequester: late 14c., from O.Fr. sequestrer (14c.), from L.L. sequestrare "to place in safekeeping," from L. sequester "trustee, mediator," probably originally "follower," related to sequi "to follow" (see sequel). Meaning "seize by authority, confiscate" is first attested 1510s.
rapine: c.1412, from M.Fr. rapine (12c.), from L. rapina "robbery, plunder," from rapere "seize, carry off, rob" (see rapid).
raptorial: "predatory," 1825, from L. raptor "robber," from rapt-, pp. stem of rapere "seize" (see rapid). Raptor in ornithology is first attested 1873.
captive (n.): late 14c., from L. captivus, from captus, pp. of capere "to take, hold, seize" (see capable). Replaced O.E. hæftling, from hæft "taken, seized."
intercept: c.1540, from L. interceptus, pp. of intercipere "take or seize between," from inter- "between" + -cipere, comb. form of capere "to take, catch" (see capable).
rapt: c.1400, "carried away" (in an ecstatic trance), from L. raptus, pp. of rapere "seize, carry off" (see rapid). Sense of "engrossed" first recorded 1509. As a pp. adj. in Eng., the back-formed verb rap "to affect with rapture" was common c.1600-1750. The fig. sense is from the notion of "carried up into Heaven (bodily or in a dream)," as in a saint's vision.
grasp: 1382, possibly metathesis of O.E. *græpsan "to touch, feel," from P.Gmc. *graipison (cf. E.Fris. grapsen "to grasp"), from root *graip (see grope). Originally "to reach for, feel around;" sense of "seize" first recorded mid-16c.
rapacity: 1540s, from M.Fr. rapacité (16c.), from L. rapacitatem (nom. rapacitas) "greediness," from rapax "grasping" (gen. rapacis) "plundering," from rapere "seize" (see rapid).
beget: O.E. begietan "to get by effort, find, acquire, attain, seize" (class V strong verb, p.t. begeat, pp. begeaton), from be- + get (q.v.). Sense of "to procreate" is from c.1200. Related to O.H.G. pigezzan, Goth. bigitan "to get, obtain."
rupture (n.): 1481, from L. ruptura "the breaking (of an arm or leg), fracture," from pp. stem of rumpere "to break," cognate with O.E. reafian "to seize, rob, plunder," reofan "to tear, break;" O.N. rjufa "to break;" see reft). Meaning "abdominal hernia" first attested 1539. The verb is first recorded 1739.
inception: late 15c., from L. inceptionem (nom. inceptio), from inceptus, pp. of incipere "begin, take in hand," from in- "in, on" + cipere comb. form of capere "take, seize" (see capable).
attach: early 14c., "to take or seize (property or goods) by law," a legal term, from O.Fr. estachier "to attach" (Fr. attacher, It. attaccare), perhaps from a- "to" + Frank. *stakon "a post, stake" or a similar Gmc. word (see stake (n.)). Meaning "to fasten, affix, connect" is first attested 1802, from French.
catalepsy: late 14c., cathalempsia, from M.L. catalepsia, from Gk. katalepsis "a seizing upon," from kataleptos "seized," from katalambanein "to seize upon," from kata- "down" + lambanein "to take" (see analemma).
surreptitious: mid-15c., from L. surrepticius "stolen, furtive, clandestine," from surreptus, pp. of surripere "seize secretly," from sub "from under" (hence, "secretly") + rapere "to snatch" (see rapid). Related: Surreptitiously.
pounce (v.): 1686, originally "to seize with the pounces," from pownse (n.) "hawk's claws" (1486), from O.Fr. poinçon (see punch (v.)), on the notion of the claws that punch holes in things. In falconry, the heel claw is a talon, and others are pounces.
nab (v.): "to catch (someone), 1686, probably a variant of dial. nap "to seize, catch, lay hold of" (1673, now surviving only in kidnap), which is possibly from Scand. (cf. Norw. nappe "to catch, snatch;" Swed. nappa; Dan. nappe "to pinch, pull"), reinforced by M.E. napand "grasping, greedy."
encroach: early 14c., from O.Fr. encrochier "seize, fasten on, perch," lit. "to catch with a hook," from en- "in" + croc "hook," from O.N. krokr "hook." Sense of "trespass" is first recorded 1530s. Related: Encroached; encroaches; encroaching.
havoc: 1419, from Anglo-Fr. havok in phrase crier havok "cry havoc" (1385), a signal to soldiers to seize plunder, from O.Fr. havot "plundering, devastation" (fr. avoir), from a Gmc. source (see hawk (n.)), or from L. habere "to have, possess." General sense of "devastation" first recorded c.1480.
prehensile: 1781, from Fr. préhensile (Buffon), from L. prehensus, pp. of prehendere "to grasp, to seize," from præ- "before" + -hendere, related to hedera "ivy," via notion of "clinging," and cognate with Gk. khandanein "to take in, hold" (see get).
apt: late 14c., "suited, fitted, adapted," from L. aptus "fit, suited," pp. of *apere "to attach, join, tie to," from PIE base *ap- "to grasp, take, reach" (cf. Skt. apnoti "he reaches," L. apisci "to reach after, attain," Hitt. epmi "I seize"). Elliptical sense of "becoming, appropriate" is from 1560s; sense of "habitually liable" is from 1520s.
taint (v.): 1570s, "to corrupt, contaminate," also "to trouch, tinge, imbue slightly" (1590s), from M.E. teynten "to convict, prove guilty" (late 14c.), partly from O.Fr. ataint, pp. of ataindre "to touch upon, seize" (see attainder). Also from Anglo-Fr. teinter "to color, dye" (early 15c.), from O.Fr. teint (12c.), pp. of teindre "to dye, color," from L. tingere (see tincture).
marque: "seizure by way of reprisal," 1447, in letters of marque "official permission to capture enemy merchant ships," from Anglo-Fr. mark (1354), from O.Prov. marca "reprisal," from marcar "seize as a pledge, mark," probably from a Gmc. source (cf. O.H.G. marchon "delimit, mark;" see mark (1)), but the sense evolution is difficult.
tackle (n.): mid-13c., "apparatus, gear," from M.Du. or M.L.G. takel "the rigging of a ship," perhaps related to M.Du. taken "grasp, seize" (see take), or perhaps from root of tack (1). Meaning "apparatus for fishing" is recorded from late 14c. The noun meaning "act of tackling" in the sporting sense is recorded from 1876 (see tackle (v.)); as the name of a position in Amer. football, it is recorded from 1891.
heave: O.E. hebban "to lift, raise" (class VI strong verb; past tense hof, pp. hafen), from P.Gmc. *khafjanan (cf. O.N. hefja, Du. heffen, Ger. heben, Goth. hafjan), from PIE *kap- "seize;" related to O.E. habban "to hold, possess." Sense of "retch, make an effort to vomit" is first attested 1601. Nautical heave-ho was a chant in lifting.
fang: O.E. fang "prey, spoils, a seizing or taking," from gefangen, pp. of fon "seize, take, capture," from P.Gmc. *fango- (cf. O.N. fanga, Ger. fangen), from PIE base *pank-/*pak- "to make firm, fix;" connected to L. pax (gen. pacis) "peace." The sense of "canine tooth" (1555) probably developed from O.E. fengtoð, lit. "catching- or grasping-tooth."
haven: O.E. hæfen, from O.N. hofn, from P.Gmc. *khafnaz (cf. M.L.G. havene, Ger. Hafen), perhaps from PIE *kap- "to seize, hold contain" (see have), but cf. also O.N. haf, O.E. hæf "sea." Figurative sense of "refuge," now practically the only sense, is early 13c.