proffer
UK /ˈpɹɒfə(ɹ)/ · US /ˈpɹɑfɚ/ noun, verb, proper noun
Forms proffers proffering proffered profre proffre
- noun An offer made; something proposed for acceptance by another; a tender.
- noun (obsolete) An attempt, an essay.
- verb (transitive, reflexive) To offer for acceptance; to propose to give; to make a tender of. “to proffer friendship, a gift, or services”
- verb (transitive, obsolete) To attempt or essay of one's own accord; to undertake or propose to undertake.
- proper noun A surname.
Synonyms
Etymology
The noun is derived from Middle English profre (“act of offering or presenting a gift; offer of something; challenge; sacrifice; act of petitioning or requesting; petition, request; proposal, suggestion; idea, thought; attempt, effort; appearance; (law) payment to the Exchequer by a sheriff or other officer of estimated revenue due to the monarch”) [and other forms], and then:
* partly from Late Latin profrum, proferum (“payment to the Exchequer of estimated revenue due to the monarch (also puruoffrus), offer to convict a criminal”), and from its likely etymon Anglo-Norman profre, proffre, porofre (“payment to the Exchequer of estimated revenue due to the monarch; offer, proposal”), and
* partly from the verb.
The verb is derived from Late Middle English prouffer, prouffre, Middle English profren, profer, proffere (“to offer, propose; to deliver, hand over, present; to take up; to volunteer; to dedicate; to attempt, try; to risk; to challenge; to provide; to ask, invite; to proceed, start; to grant; to argue”) [and other forms], from Anglo-Norman profrer, proferer, profferer, proffrir, propherer, proufrir, and Old French proferir, proffrir, profrir (“to offer, propose; to present; to volunteer”), variants of Anglo-Norman puroffrir and Middle French poroffrir, paroffrir, Old French poroffrir, paroffrir, porofrir, from por-, pur- (prefix meaning ‘to go through’ or having an intensifying effect) + offrir, ofrir (“to offer”) (modern French offrir (“to offer; to give as a gift; to open oneself up to (someone)”)). Offrir is derived from Vulgar Latin *offerīre, from Latin offerre, present active infinitive of offerō (“to offer, present; to exhibit, show; to expose; to cause, inflict; to consecrate, dedicate; to sacrifice”) (from ob- (prefix meaning ‘against; towards’) + ferō (“to bear, carry; to support; to endure; to bring forth; to put in motion; to move forward”) (ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *bʰer- (“to bear, carry”))).
Webster’s 1913
- verb To offer for acceptance; to propose to give; to make a tender of; as, to proffer a gift; to proffer services; to proffer friendship.
- verb To essay or attempt of one's own accord; to undertake, or propose to undertake. [R.] Milton.
- noun An offer made; something proposed for acceptance by another; a tender; as, proffers of peace or friendship.
- noun Essay; attempt. [R.] Bacon.
Etymology [OE. profren, proferen, F. proférer, fr. L. proferre to bring forth or forward, to offer; pro forward + ferre to bring. See Bear to produce.]
Sources: Wiktionary · WordNet 3.0 · Webster’s 1913 — from the Wiktionary entry “proffer”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details