A- (3) prefix meaning "not," from Gk a-, an- "not," from pie base *ne "not" (see un-)

port (3) --- bearing, mien, c.1369, from O.Fr. port, from porter "to carry," from L. portare (see port (1)).

port (4) --- sweet dark-red wine, 1691, shortened from Oporto, city in northwest Portugal from which the wine was originally shipped, from O Porto "the port."

portable --- c.1400, from Fr. portable, from L.L. portabilis "that can be carried," from L. portare "to carry" (see port (1)).

portage --- 1423, "action of carrying," from O.Fr. portage "tax paid on entering a town," from porter "to carry," from L. portare "to carry" (see port (1)). Sense of "carrying of boats from one navigable water to another" is from 1698, reinforced in Canadian Fr.

portal --- c.1300, from M.L. portale "city gate, porch," from neut. of portalis (adj.) "of a gate," from L. porta "gate" (see port (2)).

portcullis --- c.1300, from O.Fr. porte coleice "sliding gate" (c.1200), from porte "gate" (see port (2)) + coleice "sliding, flowing," fem. of coleis, from L. colatus, pp. of colare "to filter, strain."

Porte --- Ottoman court at Constantinople, 1609, from Fr., la Sublime Porte, translation of Arabic bab-i-'aliy, lit. "lofty gate," official name of the central office of the Ottoman government (cf. Vatican for "the Papacy," Kremlin for "the U.S.S.R."). Supposedly a ref. to the ancient custom of holding royal audience in the doorway of a king's palace or tent.

portend --- 1432, from L. portendere "foretell," originally "to stretch forward," from por- (variant of pro-) "forth, forward" + tendere "to stretch, extend" (see tenet).

portent --- 1563, from M.Fr. portente, from L. portentum "a sign, omen," from neut. of portentus, pp. of portendre (see portend). Portentous is recorded from c.1540.

porter (1) --- person who carries, 1263, from Anglo-Fr. portour, O.Fr. porteor, from L.L. portatorem (acc. portator) "one who carries," from L. portare "to carry" (see port (1)).

porter (2) --- doorkeeper, janitor, 1180s, from Anglo-Fr. portour, from O.Fr. portier, from L.L. portarius "gatekeeper," from L. porta "gate" (see port (2)).

porter (3) --- dark beer, 1727, as porter's ale, from porter (1), because the beer was made for porters and other laborers, being cheap and strong.

porterhouse --- restaurant or chophouse where porter is served, c.1758, from porter (3). Porterhouse steak (1841) is said to be from a particular establishment in New York City.

portfolio --- 1722, from It. portafoglio "a case for carrying loose papers," from porta, imperative of portare "to carry" (see port (1)) + foglio "sheet, leaf," from L. folium (see folio). Meaning "collection of securities held" is from 1930.

porthole --- 1591, from port (2) + hole.

portico --- 1605, from It. portico, from L. porticus "colonnade, arcade," from porta "gate" (see port (2)). Specifically of the Painted Porch in Athens.

portion --- c.1300, from O.Fr. porcion (12c.), from L. portionem (nom. portio) "share, part," accusative of the noun in the phrase pro portione "according to the relation (of parts to each other)" (see proportion). The verb meaning "to divide in portions" is recorded from c.1330.

Portland --- in Portland cement, 1720, named by its inventor, Eng. mason Joseph Aspdin, from resemblance of the color to the stone of Portland peninsula on the coast of Dorsetshire.

portly --- 1529, "stately, dignified," from port (3) "bearing, carriage" (q.v.). Meaning "stout" is first recorded 1598.

portmanteau --- 1584, "traveling case or bag for clothes and other necessaries," from M.Fr. portemanteau "traveling bag," originally "court official who carried a prince's mantle" (1547), from porte, imperative of porter "to carry" (see porter (1)) + manteau "cloak" (see mantle). Portmanteau word "word blending the sound of two different words," is 1882, coined by Lewis Carroll for the sort of words he invented for "Jabberwocky," on notion of "two meanings packed up into one word."

portrait --- c.1375 (in portreyture), from M.Fr. portrait, from O.Fr. portret (13c.), noun use of pp. of portraire "to paint, depict" (see portray).

portray --- c.1300, from Anglo-Fr. purtraire, O.Fr. portraire "to draw, to paint, portray" (12c.), lit. "trace, draw forth," from por- "forth" (from L. pro-) + traire "trace, draw," from L. trahere "to drag, draw" (see tract (1)).

Portugal --- c.1386, Portyngale, from M.L. Portus Cale (Roman name of modern Oporto), "the port of Gaya." Alfonso, Count of Portucale, became the first king of Portugal.

pose (v.1) --- put in a certain position, c.1374, "suggest, propose, suppose, assume," from O.Fr. poser "put, place, propose," a term in debating, from L.L. pausare "to halt, rest, pause" (see pause). The O.Fr. verb acquired the sense of L. ponere "to put, place," by confusion of the similar stems. Sense of "to assume a certain attitude" is from 1850; the trans. sense (as an artist's model, etc.) is from 1859. The noun meaning "act of posing the body" is from 1818; its sense of "attitudinize" is from 1840. Poser "one who practices an affected attitude" is from 1881; revived in teen-ager slang 1980s.

pose (v.2) --- to puzzle, confuse, perplex, 1593, earlier "question, interrogate" (1526), probably from M.Fr. poser "suppose, assume," from O.Fr. poser (see pose (v.1)). Also in some cases a shortening of Eng. appose "examine closely," and oppose. Poser "question that puzzles" is from 1793.

poseur --- one who practices affected attitudes, 1872, from Fr. poseur, from verb poser "affect an attitude or pose," from O.Fr. poser "to put or place" (see pose (v.1)). The word is Eng. poser in Fr. garb, and thus could itself be considered an affectation.

posh --- 1918, of uncertain origin; no evidence for the common derivation from an acronym of port outward, starboard home, supposedly the shipboard accommodations of wealthy British traveling to India on the P & O Lines (to keep their cabins out of the sun); see objections outlined in G. Chowdharay-Best, "Mariner's Mirror," Jan. 1971. More likely from slang posh "a dandy" (1890), from thieves' slang meaning "money" (1830), originally "coin of small value, halfpenny," possibly from Romany posh "half."

posit --- 1647, from L. positus, pp. of ponere "put, place" (see position).

position (n.) --- c.1374, as a term in logic and philosophy, from O.Fr. posicion, from L. positionem (nom. positio) "act or fact of placing, position, affirmation," from posit-, pp. stem of ponere "put, place," from PIE *po-s(i)nere, from *apo- "off, away" (see apo-) + *sinere "to leave, let," of obscure origin. Meaning "manner in which a body is arranged or posed" first recorded 1703; specifically in ref. to dance steps, 1778, sexual intercourse, 1883. Meaning "official station, employment" is from 1890. The verb meaning "to put in a particular position" is recorded from 1817.

positive --- c.1300, a legal term meaning "formally laid down," from O.Fr. positif (13c.), from L. positivus "settled by arbitrary agreement, positive" (opposed to naturalis "natural"), from positus, pp. of ponere "put, place" (see position). Sense broadened to "expressed without qualification" (1598), then "confident in opinion" (1665); mathematical use is from 1704; in electricity, 1755. Psychological sense of "concentrating on what is constructive and good" is recorded from 1916. Positivism (1847) is the philosophy of Auguste Comte, who published "Philosophie positive" in 1830.

positron --- 1933, coined from posi(tive) (elec)tron.

posse --- 1645 (in Anglo-L. from 1314), shortening of posse comitatus "the force of the country" (1626, in Anglo-L. from 1285), from M.L. posse "body of men, power," from L. posse "have power, be able" + comitatus "of the country," gen. of L.L. word for "court palace." Modern slang meaning "small gang" is probably from Western movies.

possess --- 1483, "to hold, occupy, reside in" (without regard to ownership), from O.Fr. possessier (1269), from L. possess-, pp. stem of possidere "to possess." Meaning "to hold as property" is recorded from c.1500. Demonic sense is recorded from 1534 (implied in possessed). Possessive first attested 1530 in grammatical sense.

possession --- 1340, "act or fact of possessing," also "that which is possessed," from L. possessionem (nom. possessio), from pp. stem of possidere "to possess." Legal property sense is earliest; demonic sense first recorded 1590.

possible --- c.1300, from L. possibilis "that can be done," from posse "be able" (see potent).

POSSLQ --- 1979, acronym of person of opposite sex sharing living quarters; but it was never an official category.

possum --- 1613, shortened form of opossum (q.v.). Phrase play possum is first recorded 1822.

post- --- prefix meaning "after," from L. post "behind, after, afterward," from *pos-ti (cf. Arcadian pos, Doric poti "toward, to, near, close by;" O.C.S. po "behind, after," pozdu "late;" Lith. pas "at, by"), from PIE *po- (cf. Gk. apo "from," L. ab "away from"). Logical fallacy post hoc, ergo propter hoc is L., lit. "after this, therefore because of this," attested from 1704. Post-bellum used in U.S. South from 1874 in ref. to Amer. Civil War; post-war first recorded 1908 in ref. to the Boer War.

post (1) --- upright timber, O.E. post "pillar, doorpost," and O.Fr. post, both from L. postis "post," perhaps from por- "forth" + stare "to stand" (see stet). Similar compound in Skt. prstham "back, roof, peak," Avestan parshti "back," Gk. pastas "porch in front of a house, colonnade," M.H.G. virst "ridepole," Lith. pirstas, O.C.S. pristu "finger" (PIE *por-st-i-). The verb meaning "to affix (a paper, etc.) to a post" (in a public place) is first recorded 1650.

post (2) --- place when on duty, 1598, from M.Fr. poste "place where one is stationed," also, "station for post horses" (16c.), from It. posto "post, station," from V.L. *postum, from L. postium, neut. pp. of ponere "to place, to put" (see position). Earliest sense in Eng. was military; meaning "job, position" is attested 1695. The figurative sense of "carrying" by post horses is also behind the verb in bookkeeping (1622) meaning "to transfer from a day book to a formal account." To keep (someone) posted "supply with news" is 1847, Amer.Eng.

post (3) --- mail system, 1506, from post (2) on notion of riders and horses posted at intervals along a route to speed mail in relays, from M.Fr. poste in this sense (1477). The verb meaning "to send through the postal system" is recorded from 1837. Postmark (n.) is first recorded 1678; postman first recorded 1529; postcard is from 1870. Post office first recorded 1652 as "public department in charge of letter-carrying;" Meaning "Building where postal business is carried on" is from 1657. In slang or euphemistic sense of "sexual game" it refers to a parlor game first attested early 1850s in which pretend "letters" were paid for by kisses.

post (v.) --- to put up bail money, 1781, from one of the posts, but which one is uncertain.

post factum --- 1692, from L., lit. "after the fact."

post meridiem --- after noon, 1647, from L., from post "after" + acc. of meridies "midday, noon."

postage --- cost of sending something by mail, 1654, from post (3). Postage stamp is attested from 1840; they were recorded as being collected in albums by 1862.

postal --- pertaining to the mail system, 1843, on model of Fr. postale (1836), from post (3). Noun meaning "state of irrational and violent anger" (usually in phrase going postal) attested by 1997, in ref. to a cluster of news-making workplace shootings in U.S. by what were commonly described as "disgruntled postal workers" (the cliche itself, though not the phrase, goes back to at least 1994).

post-date (v.) --- 1624, from post- + date (v.) "to assign a date to, to mark a date on."

poster --- 1838, from post (1) in the verbal sense of "fasten to a post" (1633). Poster boy/girl/child "someone given prominence in certain causes" is from 1980s, in ref. to fund-raising drives for charities associated with disability, featuring child sufferers, a feature since 1930s.

posterior (adj.) --- 1534, "later," from L. posterior "after, later, behind," comparative of posterus "coming after, subsequent," from post "after." Meaning "buttocks" is attested from 1619.

posterity --- 1387, from O.Fr. posterité, from L. posteritatem (nom. posteritas) "the condition of coming after," from posterus "coming after, subsequent," from post "after."

postern --- c.1290, "back door, private door," from O.Fr. posterne, earlier posterle, from L.L. posterula "small back door or gate," dim. of L. posterus "that is behind, coming after, subsequent," from post "after."

post-graduate (adj.) --- 1858, originally Amer.Eng., from post- + graduate (adj.). As a noun, attested from 1890. Abbreviation post-grad is recorded from 1950.

posthaste --- 1545, usually said to be from "post haste" instruction formerly written on letters (attested from 1538), from post (3) "system for sending mail" + haste. The verb post "to ride or travel with great speed" is recorded from 1558.

posthumous --- 1608, "born after the death of the originator" (author or father), from L.L. posthumus, from L. postumus "last, last-born," superlative of posterus "coming after, subsequent." Altered in L.L. by association with L. humare "to bury," suggesting death; the one born after the father's death obviously being the last.

postillon --- 1591, from M.Fr. postillon (1538), from It. postiglione "forerunner, guide," especially for one carrying mail on horseback, from posta "mail" (see post (3)) + compound suffix from L. -ilio.

post-impressionism --- 1910, from post- + impressionism (see impressionist).

Post-it --- 1975, proprietary name.

postlude --- 1851, from post- + (pre)lude.

post-millennial --- 1851, from post- "after" + millennial; chiefly in ref. to the Protestant doctrine that the second coming of Christ will occur after, not at, the Christian millennium.

post-modern --- 1949, from post- + modern. Originally in architecture writing; specific sense in the arts emerged 1960s. Postmodernism defined by Terry Eagleton as "the contemporary movement of thought which rejects ... the possibility of objective knowledge" and is therefore "skeptical of truth, unity, and progress."

post-mortem --- 1734, from L. post mortem, from post "after" + mortem, accusative of mors "death" (see mortal). As a shortening of post-mortem examination it is recorded from 1850.

post-operative --- occurring after a surgical operation, 1889; short form post-op is attested from 1971.

post-partum --- 1844, "occurring after birth," from L. post partum "after birth," from post "after" + acc. of partus "a bearing, a bringing forth," from partus, pp. of parere "to bring forth" (see pare). Post-partum depression first attested 1929.

postpone --- 1500, from L. postponere "put after, neglect, postpone," from post "after" + ponere "put, place" (see position).

postprandial --- 1820, formed from post- "after" + L. prandium "luncheon, meal," from *pram "early" + edere "to eat" (see edible).

postscript --- 1523, from L. post scriptum "written after," from neuter pp. of L. postscribere "write after," from post "after" + scribere "to write" (see script).

postulate (v.) --- 1433 (implied in postulation), "nominate to a church office," from M.L. postulatus, pp. of postulare "to ask, demand," probably formed from pp. of L. poscere "ask urgently, demand," from *posk-to-, Italic inchoative of PIE base *prek- "to ask questions" (cf. Skt. prcchati, Avestan peresaiti "interrogates," O.H.G. forskon, Ger. forschen "to search, inquire"). Use in logic dates from 1646, borrowed from M.L. The noun is first recorded 1588.

posture --- 1605, from Fr. posture (16c.), from It. postura "position, posture," from L. positura "position, station," from postulus, pp. of ponere "put, place" (see position). The verb, in the fig. sense of "to take up an artificial mental position" is attested from 1877. Posturpedic trademark name (Sealy, Inc., Chicago) for a brand of mattress, filed in 1951.

posy --- 1533, "line of verse engraved on the inner surface of a ring," from poesy (q.v.), recorded in this sense from c.1430. Meaning "flower, bouquet" first recorded 1573, from notion of the language of flowers.

pot (1) --- vessel, from late O.E. pott and O.Fr. pot, both from a general Low Gmc. and Romanic word from V.L. *pottus, of uncertain origin, said by OED to be unconnected to L.L. potus "drinking cup" (c.600). Celtic forms are said to be borrowed from Eng. and French. Slang meaning "large sum of money staked on a bet" is attested from 1823. Potbellied is first attested 1657; potholder is from 1928. Pot roast is from 1881; pot-pie is 1823, Amer.Eng.; phrase go to pot (16c.) suggests cooking. Potboiler in the literary sense is 1864, from notion of something one writes just to put food on the table. Potted in the fig. sense of "put into a short, condensed form" is attested from 1866. In phrases, the pot calls the kettle black-arse is from c.1700; shit or get off the pot is traced by Partridge to Canadian armed forces in World War II.

pot (2) --- marijuana, 1938, probably a shortened form of Mexican Sp. potiguaya "marijuana leaves."

potable --- 1572, from O.Fr. potable (14c.), from L.L. potabilis "drinkable," from L. potare "to drink" (see potion).

potash --- 1648, loan-translation of Du. potaschen, lit. "pot ashes," so called because it was originally obtained by soaking wood ashes in water and evaporating the mixture in an iron pot. Cf. Ger. Pottasche, Dan. potaske, Swed. pottaska. See also potassium. Fr. potasse (1577), It. potassa are Gmc. loan-words.

potassium --- 1807, coined by Eng. chemist Sir Humphrey Davy (1778-1829) from Mod.L. potassa, Latinized form of potash (q.v.). Davy first isolated it from potash. Symbol K is from L. kalium "potash."

potato --- 1565, from Sp. patata, from Carib (Haiti) batata "sweet potato." Sweet potatoes were first to be introduced to Europe; in cultivation in Spain by mid-16c.; in Virginia by 1648. Early 16c. Port. traders carried the crop to all their shipping ports and the sweet potato was quickly adopted from Africa to India and Java. The name later (1597) was extended to the common white potato, from Peru, which was at first (mistakenly) called Virginia potato, or, because at first it was of minor importance compared to the sweet potato, bastard potato. Sp. invaders in Peru began to use white potatoes as cheap food for sailors 1536. The first potato from South America reached Pope Paul III in 1540; grown in France at first as an ornamental plant. According to popular tradition, introduced to Ireland 1565 by John Hawkins. Brought to England from Colombia by Sir Thomas Herriot, 1586. Ger. kartoffel is from It. tartufolo "truffle." Frederick II forced its cultivation on Prussian peasants in 1743. The Fr. is pomme de terre, lit. "earth-apple;" a Swed. dialectal word for "potato" is jordpäron, lit. "earth-pear." Colloquial pronunciation tater is attested in print from 1759. To drop (something) like a hot potato is from 1846. Children's counting-out rhyme that begins one potato, two potato first recorded 1885 in Canada.

poteen --- illicit whiskey, 1812, from Ir. poitin "little pot," suggesting distillation in small quantities, from Eng. pot (1) "vessel" + dim. suffix -in, -een.

potent --- c.1500, from L. potentem (nom. potens) "powerful," prp. of *potere "be powerful," from potis "powerful, able, capable" (cognate with Skt. patih "master, husband," Gk. posis, Lith. patis "husband"). Meaning "having sexual power" is first recorded 1899. Potency is attested from 1539, from L. potentia "power," from potentem "potent."

potentate --- c.1400, from L.L. potentatus "a ruler," also "political power," from L. potentatus "power, dominion," from potentem (nom. potens) "powerful" (see potent).

potential --- 1398, "possible" (as opposed to actual), from L.L. potentialis "potential," from L. potentia "power" (see potent). The noun, meaning "that which is possible," is first attested 1817, from the adj.

pother --- c.1591, "disturbance, commotion," of unknown origin. Meaning "mental trouble" is from 1641; verb sense of "to fluster" is attested from 1692.

pot-hole --- 1826, originally a geological feature in glaciers and gravel beds, from M.E. pot in sense of "a deep hole for a mine, or from peat-digging" (1375, sense now generally obsolete, but preserved in Scotland and northern England dialect); perhaps ultimately related to pot (1) on notion of "deep, cylindrical shape." Applied to holes in a road from 1909.

potion --- c.1300, from O.Fr. pocion (12c.), from L. potionem (nom. potio) "potion, a drinking," from potus "drunken," irregular pp. of potare "to drink," from PIE base *po-/*pi- "drink" (cf. Skt. pati "drinks;" Gk. pinein "to drink," poton "that which one drinks," potos "drinking bout;" O.C.S. piti "to drink," pivo "beverage").

potlatch --- 1845, from Chinook jargon, "a gift," from Wakashan (Nootka) patshatl "giving, gift."

potluck --- 1592, from pot (1) + luck, with notion of "one's luck or chance as to what may be in the pot."

Potomac --- from Algonquian Patowmeck, originally the name of a native village in Virginia, perhaps lit. "something brought."

potpourri --- 1611, "mixed meats served in a stew," from Fr. pot pourri "stew," lit. "rotten pot" (loan-translation of Sp. olla podrida), from pourri, pp. of pourrir "to rot," from V.L. *putrire, from L. putrescere "grow rotten" (see putrescent). Notion of "medley" led to meaning "mixture of dried flowers and spices," first recorded in Eng. 1749. Fig. sense (originally in music) of "miscellaneous collection" is recorded from 1855.

potsherd --- c.1325, from pot (1) + schoord, from O.E. sceard (see shard).

potshot --- 1858, "shot taken at animal simply to kill for food," in other words, to get it in the pot, not for sporting or marksmanship. Extended sense of "opportunistic criticism" first recorded 1926.

pottage --- c.1225, lit. "that which is put in a pot," from O.Fr. potage "soup," from pot "pot" (see pot (1)).

potter (n.) --- late O.E. pottere, O.Fr. potier, from root of pot (1). First record of pottery is attested from 1483, "a potter's workshop," from O.Fr. poterie (13c.), from potier. Meaning "pottery-ware" is first recorded 1785. Potter's field (1526) is Biblical, a ground where clay suitable for pottery was dug, later purchased by high priests of Jerusalem as a burying ground for strangers, criminals, and the poor (Matt. xxvii.7).

potter (v.) --- 1530, "to poke again and again," frequentative of obsolete poten "to push, poke," from O.E. potian "to push" (see put). Sense of "occupy oneself in a trifling way" is first recorded 1740.

potty (adj.) --- crazy, silly, 1920, slang, of unknown origin, perhaps connected to potter (v.). Earlier slang senses were "easy to manage" (1899) and "feeble, petty" (1860).

potty (n.) --- 1942, child's word for "chamber pot," from pot (1). Potty-training is attested from 1958. Potty-mouth "one who uses obscene language" is student slang from 1968.

pouch --- c.1384, "small bag in which money is carried," from Anglo-Fr. puche, O.N.Fr. pouche (13c.), O.Fr. poche, from a Gmc. source (cf. O.E. pocca "bag;" see poke (n.1)). Extended to cavities in animal bodies from c.1450.

pouf --- styles of elaborate female head-dress, 1817 (in ref. to styles of c.1780), from Fr. bouffer "to blow out, puff," probably of imitative origin. As a fashion in dress-making, recorded from 1869; in ref. to over-stuffed cushions, 1884.

poultice --- 1542, alteration of M.E. pultes, from L. pultes, pl. of puls "porridge" (see pulse (n.)).

poultry --- 1345, from O.Fr. pouletrie "domestic fowl" (1280), from poulet "young fowl" (see pullet). Poulterer (1638) is a redundancy, but has largely ousted orig. poulter (c.1400), from O.Fr. pouletier "poulterer," with agent suffix -er. Poetic poulter's measure (1576) is of fanciful origin.