waive

waive · verb¹

1. Old French · derived fromwaif“waif”
2. Anglo-Norman · derived fromweyver“to abandon, allow to become a waif”
3. Middle English · inherited fromweyven“to avoid, renounce”
4. English todaywaive

From Middle English weyven (“to avoid, renounce”), from Anglo-Norman weyver (“to abandon, allow to become a waif”), from Old French waif (“waif”), from gaiver (“to abandon”), ultimately of Scandinavian/North Germanic origin; see weyver.

waive · verb²

1. Proto-Germanic · derived from*waibijaną
2. Old Norse · derived fromveifa“to wave, swing”
3. Middle English · inherited fromweyven“to wave, waver”
4. English todaywaive

From Middle English weyven (“to wave, waver”), from Old Norse veifa (“to wave, swing”) (Norwegian veiva), from Proto-Germanic *waibijaną.

waive · noun³

1. Anglo-Norman · derived fromwaive
2. English todaywaive

From Anglo-Norman waive, probably as the past participle of weyver, as Etymology 1, above.

Words from the same roots