for-

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Etymology 1

From Middle English for-, vor-, from Old English for-, fer-, fær-, fyr-, from the merger of Proto-Germanic *fra- "away, away from"; see fro, from and Proto-Germanic *fur-, *far-, from Proto-Indo-European *pro-, *per-, *pr-.

Pronunciation

• (stressed) IPA: /fɔː(ɹ)/
• (unstressed) IPA: /fə(ɹ)/

Prefix

1. (no longer productive) Forth: prefixed to verbs to indicate a direction of 'away', 'off', 'forth'.

   forsteal is to steal away, forloppin is being a runaway, forban is to exile, fordrive is to drive away, fortake is to take away, forthrow is to throw off, forshake is to shake off, forhow is to cast off

2. (no longer productive) Exhausting: prefixed to verbs with the sense of wearing or exhausting one's self.

   forsing is to sing to exhaustion, forwander is to wander until weary, fortravel is to tire by travelling

3. (no longer productive) Destructively: prefixed to verbs with the sense of destruction or pain.

   forhang is to hang to death, forthink is to cause distress or regret to, fordo is to kill

4. (no longer productive) Wrongly: prefixed to verbs with the sense of wrongly, amorally.

   forteach is to misteach, forswear is to commit perjury, forworship is to worship wrongly, forlead is to mislead, forlive is to live pervertedly

5. (no longer productive) Neglectfully: prefixed to verbs with the sense of abstaining from or neglecting.

   forslip is to allow someone or something to escape by letting them slip by; forslug is to lose, neglect, or destroy by sluggishness; forslack is to lose or spoil by slackness

6. (no longer productive) Very: intensifying adjectives.

   forblack is extremely black, forswollen is excessively swollen

7. (no longer productive) Making: prefixed to verbs to indicate the subject takes the character of the verb.

   fordote is to make foolish or doting, forguilt is to bring into a state of guilt

8. (no longer productive) Excessively: prefixed to verbs with the sense of doing so in excessive or overwhelm.

   forwax is to grow to excess, forgrow is to grow to excess, forhare is to affright or harry exceedingly

9. (no longer productive) Excluding: prefixed to verbs to give the sense of prohibition or exclusion.

   forjudge is to exclude by a judgment, forshut is to shut off or out, forbar is to exclude

10. (no longer productive) Intensively

    forbeat is to beat, fordread is to be in dread of, forlay is to lie in wait for

11. (no longer productive) Thoroughly: prefixed to verbs with the sense of thoroughly, all over.

    forgrow is to become grown over or become covered with growth, forbathe is to bathe abundantly or thoroughly, forseek is to seek thoroughly, forwrap is to wrap up

Etymology 2

From Old English for-, which is identical with the preposition "for".

Prefix

1. Alternative form of fore-.

   forstand is to stand in front of so as to bar the way, fordede is a deed done for another, forlead is alternative form of forelead (“lead forward, lead before”)

Etymology 3

"Occurring only in words adopted from French, as forcatch v.

Prefix

1. (rare) Outside, out.

   foreclose is to shut out, forprise is an exception or reservation, forfeit is that which is taken from somebody in requital of a misdeed committed

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