furtive的词源

英文词源

furtive: furtive: [15] Etymologically, someone who is furtive ‘carries things away like a thief’. The word comes via Old French furtif from Latin furtīvus ‘stealthy, hidden’, a derivative of furtum ‘theft’, which in turn was based on fūr ‘thief’. This was either borrowed from or related to Greek phór ‘thief’, which came ultimately from Indo-European *bher- ‘carry’ (source of English bear) and thus meant literally ‘someone who carries things off’. A ferret is etymologically a ‘furtive’ animal.
=> bear, ferret
furtive (adj.): 16c., from Middle French furtif (16c.), from Latin furtivus "stolen," hence also "hidden, secret," from furtum "theft, robbery; a stolen thing," from fur (genitive furis) "a thief, extortioner," also a general term of abuse, "rascal, rogue," probably from PIE *bhor-, from root *bher- (1) "to carry" (see infer). Related: Furtiveness.

来自拉丁语fur, 小偷，贼。进一步来自PIE*bher, 携带，带来，词源同bring, infer.

该词的英语词源请访问趣词词源英文版：furtive 词源，furtive 含义。