with
Idioms about with
Origin of with
synonym study for with
WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH with
width, withOther definitions for with (2 of 2)
Origin of with-
WORDS THAT USE WITH-
What does with- mean?
With– is a combining form used like a prefix meaning “separation from” or “against.” It is occasionally used in a variety of everyday terms.
With– comes from Old English with, meaning “away,” “against,” or “refuse,” the very same with which eventually, and surprisingly, evolved in meaning into its current sense of “together, accompanied” in present-day English. The Latin equivalent of with is contrā, meaning “against,” which is the source of English terms such as contradict and contravene. To learn more, check out our entries for both words.
Examples of with-
One example of a word that features the form with– is withdraw, “to draw back, away, or aside.” Withdraw comes from Middle English withdrawnen, which uses the equivalent of with– in that language.
The with– part of the word here means “separation from.” The –draw part of the word means “draw,” as in “to cause to move in a particular direction.” Withdraw literally means “to separate from by moving away.”
What are some words that use the equivalent of the combining form with– in Middle or Old English?
What are some other forms that with– may be commonly confused with?
Not every word that begins with the exact letters with-, such as wither or withy, is necessarily using the combining form with– to denote “against.” Learn why wither means “fade” at our entry for the word.
Break it down!
Given the meaning of with-, what does withstand mean?