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fare
[ fair ]
/ fɛər /
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noun
verb (used without object), fared, far·ing.
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Origin of fare
synonym study for fare
4. See food.
historical usage of fare
The English noun fare derives from the verb. The Middle English verb faren (also fearen, varen, vearen, fair, faire, feren ) “to travel, go, move (in space or time)” developed from Old English faran. The Old English verb has many relatives in Germanic: Old Frisian fara, Old Saxon faran, Old High German faran, German fahren, Old Norse fara, and Gothic faran.
All these verbs come from far-, a Germanic variant of the Proto-Indo-European root per-, por- “to cross, pass, pass over, bring through, convey.” The variant por- is the source of Latin portāre “to carry, transport,” as well as the nouns porta “gate, door, opening,” portus “a harbor, a port,” and porticus “covered walk, portico.”
In Greek, the variant por- forms the noun póros “passage, ford, narrowing,” as in the proper name Bosporus (Greek Bósporos ), literally, “Oxford.” The incorrect Latin spelling Bosphorus first appears in Marcus Terentius Varro, a Roman scholar and author who was a contemporary of Cicero, and it's too late to complain about it now.
Fare in the sense “price of conveyance” appeared in Middle English, related to the Old English senses “a journey” and “to travel, go.” The meanings “to eat and drink” and “food, or the provision of food” are also first recorded in Middle English.
All these verbs come from far-, a Germanic variant of the Proto-Indo-European root per-, por- “to cross, pass, pass over, bring through, convey.” The variant por- is the source of Latin portāre “to carry, transport,” as well as the nouns porta “gate, door, opening,” portus “a harbor, a port,” and porticus “covered walk, portico.”
In Greek, the variant por- forms the noun póros “passage, ford, narrowing,” as in the proper name Bosporus (Greek Bósporos ), literally, “Oxford.” The incorrect Latin spelling Bosphorus first appears in Marcus Terentius Varro, a Roman scholar and author who was a contemporary of Cicero, and it's too late to complain about it now.
Fare in the sense “price of conveyance” appeared in Middle English, related to the Old English senses “a journey” and “to travel, go.” The meanings “to eat and drink” and “food, or the provision of food” are also first recorded in Middle English.
OTHER WORDS FROM fare
farer, nounWords nearby fare
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2021
How to use fare in a sentence
British Dictionary definitions for fare
fare
/ (fɛə) /
noun
the sum charged or paid for conveyance in a bus, train, aeroplane, etc
a paying passenger, esp when carried by taxi
a range of food and drink; diet
verb (intr)
Derived forms of fare
farer, nounWord Origin for fare
Old English faran; related to Old Norse fara to travel, Old High German faran to go, Greek poros ford
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
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