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Etymology of "profuse" by etymonline

Origin and history of profuse


profuse(adj.)

early 15c., "lavish, extravagant, liberal to excess," from Latin profusus "spread out, lavish, extravagant," literally "poured forth," past-participle adjective from profundere "pour forth," from pro "forth" (from PIE root *per- (1) "forward") + fundere "to pour" (from nasalized form of PIE root *gheu- "to pour"). Meaning "bountiful, abundant, copious" is from c. 1600. Related: Profusely; profuseness.

Entries linking to profuse

1540s, "extravagance, expenditure, prodigality, waste," from French profusion (16c.) and directly from Late Latin profusionem (nominative profusio) "a pouring out," noun of action from past-participle stem of profundere "to pour forth" (see profuse). Meaning "abundance, superfluity" is from 1705.

"characterized by or given to profusion," 1630s, from profuse + -ive. Related: Profusively; profusiveness.

Trends of profuse

adapted from books.google.com/ngrams/ with a 7-year moving average; ngrams are probably unreliable.

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