Etymology
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confines (n.)

c. 1400, "boundary, border, frontier, limit" (usually plural), from Old French confins "boundaries," from Medieval Latin confines "a border, boundary," from Latin confinium (plural confinia) "boundary, limit," from confine, neuter of confinis "bordering on, having the same boundaries," from assimilated form of com "with, together" (see con-) + finis "an end" (see finish (v.)). As "the part of a territory which is near the border" (as in Dryden's "Betwixt the confines of the Night and Day") is from c. 1600.

Entries linking to confines

con- 

word-forming element meaning "together, with," sometimes merely intensive; it is the form of com- used in Latin before consonants except -b-, -p-, -l-, -m-, or -r-. In native English formations (such as costar), co- tends to be used where Latin would use con-.

finish (v.)
late 14c., "to bring to an end;" mid-15c., "to come to an end" (intransitive), from Old French finiss-, present participle stem of fenir "stop, finish, come to an end; die" (13c.), from Latin finire "to limit, set bounds; put an end to; come to an end," from finis "that which divides, a boundary, border," figuratively "a limit, an end, close, conclusion; an extremity, highest point; greatest degree," which is of unknown origin, perhaps related to figere "to fasten, fix" (see fix (v.)). Meaning "to kill, terminate the existence of" is from 1755.
confine (v.)

1520s, "to border on, have a common boundary," a sense now obsolete, from French confiner "to border; to shut up, enclose," which is perhaps from the noun confins (see confines) or from Medieval Latin confinare "border on; set bounds." Sense of "restrict within bounds, keep within limits" is from 1590s. Related: Confined; confining.

updated on February 26, 2018

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Definitions of confines from WordNet

confines (n.)
a bounded scope;
he stayed within the confines of the city
From wordnet.princeton.edu, not affiliated with etymonline.

Dictionary entries near confines

confidentiality

configuration

configure

confine

confinement

confines

confirm

confirmation

confirmed

confiscate

confiscation

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