Amate
- Slava
- Great Grand Panjandrum
- Posts: 8170
- Joined: Thu Sep 28, 2006 9:31 am
- Location: Finger Lakes, NY
Re: Amate
My question is, which a gets the stress? Or does it switch, depending on which meaning it's meaning?
Dictionary of Early Englishamate. (1) To dismay, dishearten, daunt.
Common in the 16th century; from Old
French a, to + mater; mat, downcast. Revived
by Keats (1821): A half-blown
flow'ret which cold blasts amate. (2) amate,
to match, equal, be a mate to. Spenser
in THE FAERIE QUEENE (1596) has Many a
jolly paramoure, The which them did in
modest wise amate. Note that while amating
meant dismaying, daunting, amation
is listed in 17th century dictionaries as
meaning wanton love. Latin amor, love;
amare, amatum, to love (only fortuitously
related to amare, bitter, cp. amaritude).
Thus amatorian, amatorious,
older forms of amatory, loving, pertaining
to love. In the 17th century, amatory
was also used to mean a love-potion. An
amatorculist was a man that trifled with
women's affections, a Don Juan, a 'general
lover/ Also amorevolous (17th century),
loving tender, affectionate. Thomas
Heywood in THE HIERARCHIE OF THE
BLESSED ANGELLS (1635) listed magicke vanities,
exorcisms, incantations, amatories.
Life is like playing chess with chessmen who each have thoughts and feelings and motives of their own.
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