desert (v.)

17世纪, 转义, “离开, 放弃”, 无论是好的还是坏的意思; 1640年代, 在指兵役或职责时, “擅自离开”; 来自法语 déserter “造成离开”, 字面意思是“撤消或切断联系”, 来自拉丁语晚期 desertare, 频繁使用拉丁语 deserere “放弃, 离开, 抛弃, 放弃, 落荒而逃”, 来自 de “撤消” (见 de-) + serere “连在一起, 排成一排” (来自PIE词根 *ser- (2) “排成一排” ). “擅自退出(服务或岗位)” 的不经意意义来自1680年代. 相关链接: Deserted; deserting.

desert (n.1)

13世纪, “荒地, 荒野, 不毛之地”, 有无树木, 来自古法语 desert (12世纪) “沙漠, 荒野, 荒地; 毁灭, 废墟”, 直接来自晚期拉丁语 desertum (意大利语 diserto, 古普罗旺斯语 dezert, 西班牙语 desierto), 字面意思是“被遗弃的东西” (在武加特语中用于翻译“荒野” ), 名词使用拉丁语 deserere “forsake” 的中性过去分词(见 desert (v.) ).

“无水, 无树的相当范围的地区” 的意义在中古英语中, 逐渐成为主要意思. 古典拉丁语用 deserta, desertus 的复数表示这个意思. 18世纪常见的拼写是 desart, 这是不对称的, 但它避免了与该词的其他两种意义相混淆.

Every important worker will report what life there is in him. It makes no odds into what seeming deserts the poet is born. Though all his neighbors pronounce it a Sahara, it will be a paradise to him; for the desert which we see is the result of the barrenness of our experience. [Thoreau, Journal, May 6, 1854]

desert (n.2)

14世纪, “因一个人的行为而应得到某种待遇(好的或坏的) 的事实”, 来自古法语 deserte “merit, recompense”, 名词使用 deservir “be worthy to have” 的过去分词, 最终来自拉丁文 deservire “service well”, 来自 de- “completely” (见 de-) + servire “to serve” (见 serve (v.) ). 意思是“合适的奖赏或惩罚, 一个人应得的” (现在通常是复数, 并与 just), 来自14世纪末.

desert (adj.)

13世纪中叶, “荒芜的, 未开垦的, 浪费的, 贫瘠的, 非生产性的”, 来自古法语 desert 和拉丁语 desertum (见 desert (n. 1) ). 意思是“与沙漠有关或属于沙漠”, 来自1630年代. Desert island, 无人居住的, 来自17世纪.

Entries linking to desert

de-

active word-forming element in English and in many verbs inherited from French and Latin, from Latin de "down, down from, from, off; concerning" (see de), also used as a prefix in Latin, usually meaning "down, off, away, from among, down from," but also "down to the bottom, totally" hence "completely" (intensive or completive), which is its sense in many English words.

As a Latin prefix it also had the function of undoing or reversing a verb's action, and hence it came to be used as a pure privative — "not, do the opposite of, undo" — which is its primary function as a living prefix in English, as in defrost (1895), defuse (1943), de-escalate (1964), etc. In some cases, a reduced form of dis-.

serve (v.)

late 12c., serven, "to render habitual obedience to, owe allegiance to," also "minister, give aid, give help," from Old French servir "to do duty toward, show devotion to; set table, serve at table; offer, provide with," from Latin servire "be a servant, be in service, be enslaved;" figuratively "be devoted; be governed by; comply with; conform; flatter," originally "be a slave," related to servus "slave," which is of uncertain origin.

Perhaps from Etruscan (compare Etruscan proper names Servi, Serve, Latinized as Servius), but de Vaan says it is from Proto-Italic *serwo- "shepherd," *serwā- "observation," from PIE *seruo- "guardian" (source also of Avestan haraiti "heeds, protects"):

Rix 1994a argues that the original meaning of *serwo- probably was 'guard, shepherd', which underwent a pejorative development to 'slave' in Italy between 700 and 450 BC. Servire would be the direct derivative of servus, hence 'be a slave'; servare would in his view be derived from an older noun *serwa- or *serwom 'observation, heedance'.

It is attested by c. 1200 in widespread senses: "to be in the service of, perform a service for; attend or wait upon, be personal servant to; be a slave; owe allegiance to; officiate at Mass or other religious rites;" from early 13c. as "set food at table;" mid-14c. as "to wait on (customers)."

From late 14c. as "treat (someone or something) in some fashion." To serve (someone) right "treat as he deserves" is recorded from 1580s. Sense of "be useful, be beneficial, be suitable for a purpose or function" is from early 14c.; that of "take the place or meet the needs of, be equal to the task" is from late 14c.; that of "suffice" is from mid-15c.

The meaning "render active military service" is from 1510s. The sporting sense is attested by 1580s, first in tennis. The legal sense of "present" (a writ, warrant, etc.), "give legal notice of" is from early 15c. To serve hand and foot "minister to attentively" is by c. 1300.