collaborator (n.)
1802, "an associate in labor, one who works with another," from French collaborateur (which also sometimes was used in English), from Latin collaboratus, past participle of collaborare "to work with," from assimilated form of com "with" (see com-) + laborare "to work" (see labor (v.)).
Entries linking to collaborator
word-forming element usually meaning "with, together," from Latin com, archaic form of classical Latin cum "together, together with, in combination," from PIE *kom- "beside, near, by, with" (compare Old English ge-, German ge-). The prefix in Latin sometimes was used as an intensive.
Before vowels and aspirates, it is reduced to co-; before -g-, it is assimilated to cog- or con-; before -l-, assimilated to col-; before -r-, assimilated to cor-; before -c-, -d-, -j-, -n-, -q-, -s-, -t-, and -v-, it is assimilated to con-, which was so frequent that it often was used as the normal form.
The verb in modern French, Spanish, and Portuguese means "to plow;" the wider sense being taken by the equivalent of English travail. Sense of "endure pain, suffer" is early 15c., especially in phrase labor of child (mid-15c.). Meaning "be burdened" (with trouble, affliction, etc., usually with under) is from late 15c. The transitive senses have tended to go with belabor. Related: Labored; laboring.
1845 (implied in collaborating), "to work with another or others," a back-formation from collaborator or else modeled on French collaborer or directly from Late Latin collaboratus, past participle of collaborare. Given a bad sense in World War II: "Cooperate traitorously with an occupying enemy." Related: Collaborated.
updated on August 17, 2018
Dictionary entries near collaborator
Colin
coliseum
colitis
collaborate
collaboration
collaborator
collage
collagen
collapsable
collapse
collapsible
