Where does “enforce” come from?
Enforce comes from Old French enforcier, from Latin infortio, combining the prefix in- with Latin fors meaning "strength," ultimately from Proto-Indo-European bʰerǵʰ-.
enforce (English): To keep up, impose or bring into effect...
Definitions
- To keep up, impose or bring into effect...
Ancestry of “enforce”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Middle English | enforcen | — |
| 2 | Old French | enforcier | to fortify; to strengthen; to strengthen; to... |
| 3 | Franco-Provençal | forciér | to force |
| 4 | Latin | fortio | I force |
| 5 | Late Latin | fortia | nominative neuter plural of fortis; accusative... |
| 6 | Latin | fortis | strong, powerful; firm, resolute, steadfast,... |
| 7 | Old Latin | forctis | strong |
| 8 | Proto-Italic | forktis | strong, robust |
| 9 | Proto-Indo-European | bʰerǵʰ- | to rise; high, lofty; hill, mountain |