spirit

Meanings

Noun

• The soul of a person or other creature. What moves through experience into self-definition as souls purpose.
• A supernatural being, often but not exclusively without physical form; ghost, fairy, angel.
• Enthusiasm.
• The manner or style of something.
• A volatile liquid, such as alcohol. The plural form spirits is a generic term for distilled alcoholic beverages.
• Energy; ardour.
• One who is vivacious or lively; one who evinces great activity or peculiar characteristics of mind or temper.
• Temper or disposition of mind; mental condition or disposition; intellectual or moral state.
• Air set in motion by breathing; breath; hence, sometimes, life itself.
• A rough breathing; an aspirate, such as the letter h; also, a mark denoting aspiration.
• Intent; real meaning; opposed to the letter, or formal statement.
• Any of the four substances: sulphur, sal ammoniac, quicksilver, and arsenic (or, according to some, orpiment).
• Stannic chloride.

Verb

• To carry off, especially in haste, secrecy, or mystery.
• Sometimes followed by up: to animate with vigour; to excite; to encourage; to inspirit.

Origin

• From Middle English spirit, from Old French espirit ("spirit"), from Latin spīritus ("breath; spirit"), from Proto-Indo-European *(s)peys- ("to blow, breathe"). Compare inspire, respire, transpire, all ultimately from Latin spīrō. Displaced native Middle English gast ("spirit") (from Old English gāst ("spirit, ghost")), whence modern English ghost. sprite.