environ

environ · adverb¹

1. Proto-Indo-European · derived from*weyb-, *weyp-“to shake; to tremble; to sway, swing; to rotate, turn, wind, wrap (around)”
2. Latin · derived fromvibrō“to hurl, launch; shake; to tremble, vibrate”
3. Proto-Indo-European · derived from*gew-“to bend, curve; an arch, vault”
4. Latin · derived fromgȳrō“to turn in a circle, rotate; to circle, revolve around”
5. Old French · derived fromenviron“around, surrounding; about, approximately, roughly”
6. Middle French · derived fromenviroun
7. Anglo-Norman · derived fromenviroun
8. Middle English · inherited fromenviroun“round about in a circle or ring; all around”
9. English todayenviron

From Middle English enviroun (“round about in a circle or ring; all around”) [and other forms], from Anglo-Norman enviroun, environ [and other forms], and Middle French enviroun, environ [and other forms], from Old French environ (“around, surrounding; about, approximately, roughly”) (modern French environ), from en- (prefix meaning ‘in; into’) + viron (“circuit; circumference, compass; country round about”) (though first attested later) (from virer (“to bear, turn, veer”) (either from Latin gȳrō (“to turn in a circle, rotate; to circle, revolve around”) (ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *gew- (“to bend, curve; an arch, vault”)), or from Latin vibrō (“to hurl, launch; shake; to tremble, vibrate”) (ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *weyb-, *weyp- (“to shake; to tremble; to sway, swing; to rotate, turn, wind, wrap (around)”))) + -on (augmentative suffix)). Cognates * Catalan enviró, environ (both obsolete) * Occitan environ * Spanish environ (obsolete)

environ · verb²

1. Old French · derived fromenvironner“to arrange in a circle; to circumnavigate, travel around; to traverse, wander around; to encircle, encompass, surround”
2. Middle French · derived fromenvironner
3. Anglo-Norman · derived fromenvirouner
4. Middle English · inherited fromenvirounen
5. English todayenviron

From Middle English envirounen, enviroun (“to surround in a circle or ring, or on the perimeter; to beset, besiege; to cover, enclose, envelop; to provide a setting or surrounding to; to move in a circle; to move around the perimeter; to go, move, or wander about (a place); to fill or pervade (a place); to run all the way through”) [and other forms], from Anglo-Norman envirouner [and other forms], Middle French environner, and Old French environner (“to arrange in a circle; to circumnavigate, travel around; to traverse, wander around; to encircle, encompass, surround”) [and other forms] (modern French environner), from environ (adverb) (see etymology 1) + -er (suffix forming verbs). Cognates * Catalan environar (obsolete) * Old French avironer, avironner (Middle French avironer, avironner, Anglo-Norman avironer, aviruner) * Spanish environar (obsolete)

environ · noun³

1. Old French · derived fromenviron
2. Middle French · derived fromenviron“circumference; surroundings; (in the plural) boundaries, frontiers”
3. Anglo-Norman · derived fromenviroun
4. Middle English · inherited fromenuyroun
5. Middle English · inherited frominvyroun
6. English todayenviron

From Late Middle English invyroun, Middle English enuyroun, enuyrown, from Anglo-Norman enviroun, environ, envirun, and Middle French environ (“circumference; surroundings; (in the plural) boundaries, frontiers”) (chiefly in the plural) (modern French environ), a noun use of Old French environ (adverb): see etymology 1.

Words from the same roots