1540s, "practicing illusion or magic, juggling; deluding, deceptive," from Latin praestigious "full of tricks," from praestigiae "juggler's tricks," probably altered by dissimilation from praestrigiae, from praestringere "to blind, blindfold, dazzle," from prae "before" (see pre-) + stringere "to tie or bind" (see strain (v.)). Derogatory until 19c., marked as obsolete in Century Dictionary (1895); the positive meaning "having dazzling influence" is attested from 1913, from prestige. Related: Prestigiously; prestigiousness.
"a juggler; one who performs feats requiring dexterity and skill, particularly of the fingers," 1843, from French prestidigitateur, a hybrid coined 1830 by Jules de Rovère (who sought a new word, "qui s'accorderait mieux à ses nobles origines" to replace escamoteur and physicien), roughly based on Latin praestigiator "juggler" (see prestigious); influenced by Italian presto "quick," a conjuror's word (see presto), and by Latin digitus "finger" (see digit).
1650s, "trick, illusion, imposture" (senses now obsolete), from French prestige (16c.) "deceit, imposture, illusion" (in Modern French, "illusion, magic, glamour"), from Latin praestigium "delusion, illusion" (see prestigious).
From about 1815 it was used in the sense of "an illusion as to one's personal merit or importance, a flattering illusion," hence, positively, "a reputation for excellence, importance, or authority," senses probably introduced from French, often in reference to Napoleon:
When the same question was put to those who knew him and France best, they answered, 'that a peace dictated in France would have undone him ;'—'that his throne was founded on public opinion,' and 'that if the prestige,' for so they called it, 'of his glory were to be destroyed, the state of his affairs, and the character of the French people forbade him to expect that his power would long survive it.' ["Memoirs of Bonaparte's Deposition," Quarterly Review, Oct. 1814]
1640s, "one who schemes or plots;" agent noun from design (v.). In manufacturing or the fine arts, "one who makes an artistic design or a construction plan" is from 1660s. In fashion, as an adjective, "bearing the label of a famous clothing designer" (thus presumed to be expensive or prestigious), from 1966. Designer drug, one that mimics an illegal narcotic but has a different chemical composition so as to avoid legal restrictions, is attested by 1983.
late 14c., "the seven virtues personified;" early 15c., "the Pleiades" (see Pleiades), seven daughters of Atlas and Pleione, placed among the stars by Zeus and popularly known as the Seven Stars (see seven).
In late 20c. applied to seven venerable and prestigious U.S. colleges for women only: Barnard, Bryn Mawr, Mount Holyoke, Radcliffe, Smith, Vassar, and Wellesley. The phrase also was applied to seven similar cannon used by the Scots at Flodden. As a late-20c. name for the major multi-national petroleum companies, Seven Sisters is attested from 1962. They were listed in 1976 as Exxon, Mobil, Gulf, Standard Oil of California, Texaco, British Petroleum, and Royal Dutch Shell.
