English
lefull
Lefull comes from Middle English lefull ‘permissible, allowable’, and goes back to lēve.
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500lēve‘permission, privilege’
- Middle English, derivedc. 1150–1500lefull‘permissible, allowable’
- Englishearliest quotation 1563same form
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Earlier history not traced here.
Lineage
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500lēve‘permission, privilege’
- Middle English, derivedc. 1150–1500lefull‘permissible, allowable’
- Englishearliest quotation 1563same form
Earliest quotation: 1563, Richard Rainolde, A booke called the Foundacion of Rhetorike: “:Quid saluum esse poterit si licet furari, what can…”
Formed from leave + -ful
Proto-Indo-European *leyp- ‘to stick’
…
Proto-Germanic *laibijaną ‘to let stay’
Proto-West Germanic *laibijan ‘to leave behind’
Old English lǣfan ‘to leave’
Middle English leven ‘to leave’
English leave
Linked words
through Middle English lēve ‘permission, privilege’
Today it means
adj permissible, permitted; allowable, allowed
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Middle English lēve / lefull