attach

attach
\ \ [14] When English first acquired it, attach meant ‘seize’ or ‘arrest’. It is Germanic in origin, but reached us via Old French atachier. This was an alteration of earlier Old French estachierfasten (with a stake)’, which was based on a hypothetical Germanic *stakōn. The metaphorical meaning ‘arrest’ appears to have arisen in Anglo-Norman, the route by which the word reached English from Old French; the original, literal sense ‘fasten, join’ did not arrive in English until as late as the 18th century, as a reborrowing from modern French attacher.
\ \ A similar borrowing of Germanic *stakōn into Italian produced the ancestor of English attack.
\ \ Cf.ATTACK, STAKE

Word origins - 2ed. . 2005.

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  • attach — at·tach vb [Anglo French attacher to lodge (an action in court), seize (a person or property) by legal authority, from Old French atachier to fasten, fix, alteration of estachier, from estache stake] vt 1: to obtain a court order against… …   Law dictionary

  • attach — at‧tach [əˈtætʆ] verb [transitive] 1. if conditions are attached to an agreement, they are added to it and made a part of it: • The US government has attached conditions to economic aid. 2. if there are benefits, rights etc attached to something …   Financial and business terms

  • attach — [ə tach′] vt. [ME attachen < OFr atacher, altered by substitution of prefix < estachier, to attach < estache, a post, stake < Frank * stakka: see STICK] 1. to fasten by sticking, tying, etc. 2. to make (a person or thing) part of;… …   English World dictionary

  • Attach — At*tach , v. t. [imp. & p. p. {Attached}; p. pr. & vb. n. {Attaching}.] [OF. atachier, F. attacher, to tie or fasten: cf. Celt. tac, tach, nail, E. tack a small nail, tack to fasten. Cf. {Attack}, and see {Tack}.] 1. To bind, fasten, tie, or… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • attach — [v1] join, fasten add, adhere, affix, annex, append, bind, connect, couple, fix, hitch on, hitch up, hook on, hook up, latch onto, link, make fast, prefix, rivet, secure, slap on*, stick, tag on*, tie, unite; concepts 85,113,160 Ant. detach,… …   New thesaurus

  • Attach — At*tach , v. i. 1. To adhere; to be attached. [1913 Webster] The great interest which attaches to the mere knowledge of these facts cannot be doubted. Brougham. [1913 Webster] 2. To come into legal operation in connection with anything; to vest;… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Attach'e — At ta*ch[ e] , n. [F., p. p. of attacher. See {Attach}, v. t.] One attached to another person or thing, as a part of a suite or staff. Specifically: One attached to an embassy. [1913 Webster] …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • attach — (v.) mid 14c. (mid 13c. in Anglo Latin), to take or seize (property or goods) by law, a legal term, from O.Fr. atachier (11c.), earlier estachier to attach, fix; stake up, support (Fr. attacher, It. attaccare), perhaps from a to + Frankish… …   Etymology dictionary

  • Attach — At*tach , n. An attachment. [Obs.] Pope. [1913 Webster] …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • attach — 1 *arrest, apprehend, detain Analogous words: seize, *take, grab: capture, *catch Contrasted words: release, discharge, deliver, *free 2 *fasten, a …   New Dictionary of Synonyms

  • attach — ► VERB 1) fasten; join. 2) include (a condition) as part of an agreement. 3) assign or attribute. 4) appoint (someone) for special or temporary duties. 5) Law, archaic seize (a person or property) by legal authority. DERIVATIVES attachable …   English terms dictionary

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