c. 1300, purveien, "make previous arrangements," also "think beforehand, consider" (senses now obsolete); early 14c. as "prepare (something), make (something) ready;" late 14c. as "provide, supply (a necessity), furnish (what is needed)," from Anglo-French porveire, purveire and directly from Old French porveoir "to provide, prepare, arrange" (Modern French pourvoir), from Latin providere "look ahead, prepare, supply, act with foresight," from pro "ahead" (see pro-) + videre "to see" (from PIE root *weid- "to see"). Compare provide, which now usually replaces it. Related: Purveyed; purveying.

late 13c., "to prepare, make preparations;" late 14c., "to equip, provide with proper clothing; dress or dress up," from Old French apareillier "prepare, make (someone) ready, dress (oneself)" (12c., Modern French appareiller), from Vulgar Latin *appariculare. This is either from Latin apparare "prepare, make ready" (see apparatus), or from Vulgar Latin *ad-particulare "to put things together," from Latin particula "little bit or part, grain, jot" (see particle (n.)). "The 15th c. spellings were almost endless" [OED].

By either derivation the sense is etymologically "to join like to like, to fit, to suit." Compare French habiller "to dress," originally "prepare, arrange," English dress, from Latin directus. The words were "specially applied to clothing as the necessary preparation for every kind action" [Hensleigh Wedgwood, "A Dictionary of English Etymology," 1859].

Cognate with Italian aparecchiare, Spanish aparejar, Portuguese aparelhar. Related: Appareled; apparelled; appareling; apparelling.

"produce, prepare, or elaborate by process of secretion," 1707 (implied in secreted), a back-formation from secretion. Related: Secretes; secreting; secretious.

c. 1300, "person who prepares or furnishes (something)," agent noun from dress (v.). Meaning "table, sideboard" (on which food is prepared) is from late 14c., from Old French dresseur, dreçoir "table to prepare food," from dresser "prepare, dress." Sense of "one who is employed in clothing or adorning others" is from 1510s. Meaning "chest, dressing bureau" is by 1895.

"to lead or prepare the way to or for, go before and open (a way)," 1780, from pioneer (n.). Related: Pioneered; pioneering.