imp

imp
\ \ [OE] Old English impe meant ‘new shoot, sapling’. Its ultimate source was medieval Latin impotus ‘graft’, a borrowing from Greek émphutos, which itself was an adjective derived from the verb emphúein ‘implant’. In the early Middle English period it began to be transferred from plants to people, carrying its connotations of ‘newness’ or ‘youth’ with it, so that by the 14th century it had come to mean ‘child’. And in the 16th century, in a development similar to that which produced the now obsolete sense of limb ‘naughty child’, it was applied to ‘mischievous children, children of the Devil’, and hence to ‘mischievous or evil spirits’.

Word origins - 2ed. . 2005.

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  • Imp — Imp, v. t. [imp. & p. p. {Imped}; p. pr. & vb. n. {Imping}.] [AS. impian to imp, ingraft, plant; akin to Dan. ympe, Sw. ympa, OHG. impf[=o]n, impit[=o]n, G. impfen. See {Imp}, n.] 1. To graft; to insert as a scion. [Obs.] Rom. of R. [1913… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • imp — imp·ing; imp·ish; imp·son·ite; pal·imp·ses·tic; imp; pal·imp·sest; imp·ish·ly; imp·ish·ness; …   English syllables

  • Imp — ([i^]mp), n. [OE. imp a graft, AS. impa; akin to Dan. ympe, Sw. ymp, prob. fr. LL. impotus, Gr. ? engrafted, innate, fr. ? to implant; ? in + ? to produce; akin to E. be. See 1st {In }, {Be}.] 1. A shoot; a scion; a bud; a slip; a graft. [Obs.]… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • IMP — ist die Abkürzung für: IMP (Kompression), ein Kompressionsverfahren Chrysler IMP, ein PKW Modell der 1920er und 1930er Jahre, siehe Chrysler Imperial Illinois Malicious Processor, ein Proof of Concept OpenSPARC CPU Design, das eine Backdoor… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • IMP — [Abk. für Inosin 5´ monophosphat]: ↑ Inosinphosphat. * * * Ịmp, der; s, [mhd. imp, ↑ Imme] (bayr.): Biene. * * * IMP,   Abk. für Implikation …   Universal-Lexikon

  • Imp — Imp: В Doom гуманоид тёмно коричневого цвета, неопределённого пола, с клыками и когтями больших размеров. Умеет стрелять шаровыми молниями из ладоней. Медлителен и маложивуч. В Dungeon Keeper малорослый шустрый карлик. Имеет большие глаза, как… …   Википедия

  • imp — /imp/, n. 1. a little devil or demon; an evil spirit. 2. a mischievous child. 3. Archaic. a scion or offshoot of a plant or tree. 4. Archaic. an offspring. v.t. 5. Falconry. a. to graft (feathers) into a wing. b. to furnish (a wing, tail, etc.)… …   Universalium

  • imp. — imp. 〈Abk. für lat.〉 imprimatur * * * imp. = imprimatur …   Universal-Lexikon

  • Imp. — Imp. 〈Abk. für lat.〉 Imperator * * * imp. = imprimatur …   Universal-Lexikon

  • imp — [ımp] n [: Old English; Origin: impa] 1.) a child who behaves badly, but in a way that is funny 2.) a small creature in stories who has magic powers and behaves very badly →↑impish …   Dictionary of contemporary English

  • imp — [ ımp ] noun count 1. ) an imaginary creature that looks like a small child and likes to have fun by behaving badly 2. ) a child who behaves badly in a way that adults think is funny …   Usage of the words and phrases in modern English

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