perfume

perfume
\ \ [16] The -fume of perfume is the same word as English fumes, but whereas fumes has gone downhill semantically, perfume has remained in the realms of pleasant odours. It comes from French parfum, a derivative of the verb parfumer. This was borrowed from early Italian parfumare, a compound formed from the prefix par- ‘through’ and fumare ‘smoke’, which denoted a ‘pervading by smoke’. When it first arrived in English, the semantic element ‘burning’ was still present, and perfume denoted the ‘fumes produced by burning a substance, such as incense’, but this gradually dropped out in favour of the more general ‘pleasant smell’.
\ \ Cf.⇒ FUME

Word origins - 2ed. . 2005.

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  • Perfume — Saltar a navegación, búsqueda Para otros usos de este término, véase Perfume (grupo musical). Frascos de perfume. El nombre de perfume o perfumes proviene del latín per , por y fumare , producir humo, haciendo referencia a la substancia aromática …   Wikipedia Español

  • Perfume — Основная информация …   Википедия

  • perfume — sustantivo masculino 1. Sustancia aromática concentrada especialmente utilizada por las personas para dar buen olor: ¿Qué perfume llevas? Un perfume de jazmín . Me puse un poco de perfume antes de salir. Su novia le regaló un frasco de perfume. 2 …   Diccionario Salamanca de la Lengua Española

  • Perfume — Per fume, n. [F. parfum; cf. Sp. perfume. See {Perfume}, v.] 1. The scent, odor, or odoriferous particles emitted from a sweet smelling substance; a pleasant odor; fragrance; aroma. [1913 Webster] No rich perfumes refresh the fruitful field. Pope …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Perfume — (2009) …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • perfume — [pər fyo͞om′; ] also, and for n. usually [, pʉr′fyo͞om΄] vt. perfumed, perfuming [MFr parfumer < It perfumare < L per , intens. + fumare, to smoke < fumus, smoke: see FUME] 1. to fill with a fragrant or pleasing odor; scent 2. to put… …   English World dictionary

  • Perfume — Per*fume , v. t. [imp. & p. p. {Perfumed}; p. pr. & vb. n. {Perfuming}.] [F. parfumer (cf. Sp. perfumar); par (see {Par}) + fumer to smoke, L. fumare, fr. fumus smoke. See {Fume}.] To fill or impregnate with a perfume; to scent. [1913 Webster]… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • perfume — ► NOUN 1) a fragrant liquid used to give a pleasant smell to one s body. 2) a pleasant smell. ► VERB 1) give a pleasant smell to. 2) impregnate with perfume or a sweet smelling ingredient. DERIVATIVES perfumed adjective …   English terms dictionary

  • perfume — (n.) 1530s, from M.Fr. parfum, from parfumer to scent, from Prov. perfumar, from L. per through (see PER (Cf. per)) + fumare to smoke (see FUME (Cf. fume)). Earliest use in English was in reference to fumes from something burning. Meaning fluid… …   Etymology dictionary

  • perfume — s. m. 1. Emanação agradável. 2. Preparado industrial com cheiro agradável. 3. Suavidade, aroma, deleite …   Dicionário da Língua Portuguesa

  • perfume — *fragrance, bouquet, redolence, incense Analogous words: odor, scent, aroma, *smell …   New Dictionary of Synonyms

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