c. 1400, "moderate state of cold, coolness," from cool (adj.). Meaning "one's self-control, composure" (the thing you either keep or lose) is from 1966.
late 15c., retarden, "make slow or slower; keep back, hinder, delay" (transitive), from French retarder "restrain, hold (someone) back, keep (someone from doing something); come to a stop" (13c.) and directly from Latin retardare "make slow, delay, keep back, hinder" (see retardation). Related: Retarded; retarding. The intransitive sense of "be delayed" is from 1640s.
The noun retard is recorded from 1788 in the sense "retardation, delay;" from 1970 in the offensive meaning "retarded person," originally American English, with accent on first syllable. Other words used for "one who is mentally retarded" include retardate (1956, from Latin retardatus), and U.S. newspapers 1950s-60s often used retardee (1950).
"capable of being held or maintained," 1570s, from French tenable (12c.), from tenir "to hold," from Latin tenere "to hold, keep" (from PIE root *ten- "to stretch").
late 14c., "refraining from undue indulgence," especially in reference to food and drink, from Old French abstinent (earlier astenant) "moderate, abstemious, modest," from Latin abstinentem (nominative abstinens) "temperate, moderate," present participle of abstinere, abstenere "withhold, keep back, keep off," from assimilated form of ab "off, away from" (see ab-) + tenere "to hold" (from PIE root *ten- "to stretch").
"act of forming anew, a second formation," early 15c., from re- "back, again" + formation. The hyphenation is from 17c. to keep it distinct from reformation, as is the full pronunciation of the prefix.
