Etymograph

English

frontfire

From front + fire, coined as an opposite for backfire (and not usually seen without it).

A compound of front + fire

Latin frōns ‘forehead’

Old French front ‘forehead’

Middle English front

English front

Proto-Indo-European *péh₂wr̥

…

Proto-Germanic *fuïr

Proto-West Germanic *fuir

Old English fȳr ‘fire’

Middle English fyr

English fire

The story

From front + fire, coined as an opposite for backfire (and not usually seen without it).

Today it means

verb To have the intended effect.

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

Etymograph / frontfire