forest

A forest.

Meanings

Noun

Verb

  • To cover an area with trees.

Origin

  • From Middle English forest, from Old French forest, from Medieval Latin foresta, first used in the Capitularies of Charlemagne in reference to the royal forest (as opposed to the inner woods, or parricus), of Unknown origin. Compare Old Saxon forest, forst, Old High German forst, Modern German Forst.
  • Medieval Latin foresta probably represents the fusion of two earlier words: one taken as an adaptation of the Late Latin phrase forestis silva, mistaking forestis for woods (—a development not found in Romance languages; compare Old French selve ("forest")); the other is the continuance of an existing word since Merovingian times from Frankish *forhist ("forest, wooded country, game preserve") as the general word for "forest, forested land". The Medieval Latin term may have originated as a sound-alike, or been adapted as a play on the Frankish word. In the latter case, this would make forest a frith#Etymology 3.
  • Displaced native Middle English weald, wald, from Old English weald, Middle English scogh, scough, from Old Norse skógr, and Middle English frith, firth, from Old English fyrhþ.
  • Image:Grib skov.jpg|thumb|right|A forest.

Modern English dictionary

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