early 15c., "action of alleging, formal declaration in court," from Old French alegacion "allegation, affirmation" (Modern French allégation) and directly from Latin allegationem (nominative allegatio) "a sending, dispatching," noun of action from past-participle stem of allegare (see allege). Specifically in law, "assertion of a party to a suit or action, which he intends to prove." In general (non-legal) use, since 17c., often suggesting an assertion without proof.
"to chide, reprove," 1610s, from Latin obiurgatus, past participle of obiurgare "to chide, rebuke," from ob- (see ob-) + iurgare "to quarrel, scold," from phrase iure agere "to deal in a lawsuit," from ablative of ius "right; law; suit" (see just (adj.)) + agere "to set in motion, drive forward, do, perform," also "plead a cause at law" (from PIE root *ag- "to drive, draw out or forth, move"). Related: Objurgatory.
1560s, "to prosper, succeed;" of things, "to agree, suit, fit," a word of uncertain origin. Perhaps from Welsh cytuno "consent, agree;" but perhaps rather a metaphor from cloth-finishing and thus from cotton (n.). Hensleigh Wedgwood compares cot "a fleece of wool matted together." Meaning "become closely or intimately associated (with)," is from 1805 via the sense of "to get along together" (of persons), attested from c. 1600. Related: Cottoned; cottoning.
1530s, "pitchfork," from Old North French croche "shepherd's crook," variant of croc "hook," from Old Norse krokr "hook," which is of obscure origin but perhaps related to the widespread group of Germanic kr- words meaning "bent, hooked."
From 1570s as "any fork or forking," especially "a parting of branches of a tree;" meaning "region where the body forks" is attested from 1590s. Hence crotchcutter "women's bathing suit with leg openings which reach above the hips" (by 1997).
"low-waisted two-piece women's bathing suit," 1948, from French, coined 1947, named for the U.S. A-bomb test of June 1946 on Bikini, the Marshall Islands atoll, locally Pikinni and said to derive from pik "surface" and ni "coconut," but this is uncertain. Various explanations for the swimsuit name have been suggested, none convincingly, the best being an analogy of the explosive force of the bomb and the impact of the bathing suit style on men's libidos (compare c. 1900 British slang assassin "an ornamental bow worn on the female breast," so called because it was very "killing," also the figurative sense of bombshell).
Bikini, ce mot cinglant comme l'explosion même ... correspondant au niveau du vêtement de plage à on anéantissement de la surface vêtue; à une minimisation extrême de la pudeur. [Le Monde Illustré, August 1947]
As a style of scanty briefs, from 1960. Variant trikini (1967), with separate bra cups held on by Velcro, falsely presumes a compound in bi-.
1560s, "the carrying out or following up of anything" (also literal, "action of pursuing, a following after," but this is obsolete), from French prosecution (late 13c.) and directly from Late Latin prosecutionem (nominative prosecutio) "a following," noun of action from past-participle stem of prosequi "to follow after; chase, pursue; attack, assail" (see prosecute). The meaning "legal action, the institution and carrying out of a suit at law" is from 1630s. Hence, transferred, "the party by whom legal proceedings are initiated" (1891).
