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DictionaryRoot: ferre
Latin

ferre

bear, carry, bring

Forms

  • fer-
  • lat- — Used for ‘carried’ in the Latin verb’s grammar, but supplied by a different older root.

Origin

Reconstructed Proto-Indo-European *bher-, ‘bear; carry.’

Note

English bear is a relative from the same older source, rather than a Latin borrowing.

42 / 48
A middle-aged East Asian homeowner reluctantly holds a garden gate open while a neighbor retrieves a ball; pressed lips and resigned raised palm show unwilling toleration rather than welcome.
noun

sufferance

SUF-runs/ˈsʌfrəns/

Permission given without approval.

Etymology
sufLatinunder; up from under; subordinate or lesser
+ferLatinbear, carry, bring
+anceLatina state or quality

The “under” and “bear” components lead to enduring or putting up with something. Sufferance applies this to permission: allowing something by not forbidding it, rather than willingly approving it.

Full entry

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