English

accouple

Accouple comes from Old French acopler ‘to couple’.

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed

Lineage

Earliest quotation: 1548, Edward Hall: “The Englishmen accoupled themselves with the Frenchmen.”

Formed from ad- + couple

Proto-Indo-European *h₂éd ‘near, at’

Proto-Italic *ad ‘toward, to, on, up to, for’

Latin ad ‘to, towards’

English ad-

Latin apiō ‘to join’

Latin cōpula ‘a bond’

Old French couple ‘couple’

Middle English couple ‘a couple’

Every English word from Old French acopler

verb To join; to couple.

Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.