agreeance
ənsWord story
Agreeance is a word that seems to be continually reinvented and recycled. The term first appeared in the 16th century and enjoyed its greatest popularity in the 18th and early to mid-19th centuries. Since then it has fallen into disuse. Most likely unaware of the word's history, modern writers who recoin the term seem to like how it sounds, even though it adds nothing in meaning to its workhorse counterpart, agreement. The suffix ‐ance indeed is used in English to form many nouns from verbs: for example, appearance, acceptance, performance, and remittance. So while there is no rule preventing the formation agree + -ance, the coinage may sound quaint or pretentious to some people.
Agreeance is a word that seems to be continually reinvented and recycled. The term first appeared in the 16th century and enjoyed its greatest popularity in the 18th and early to mid-19th centuries. Since then it has fallen into disuse. Most likely unaware of the word's history, modern writers who recoin the term seem to like how it sounds, even though it adds nothing in meaning to its workhorse counterpart, agreement. The suffix ‐ance indeed is used in English to form many nouns from verbs: for example, appearance, acceptance, performance, and remittance. So while there is no rule preventing the formation agree + -ance, the coinage may sound quaint or pretentious to some people.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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Link To agreeance
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Agreeance
is always a great word to know.
So is bezoar. Does it mean:
| a screen or mat covered with a dark material for shielding a camera lens from excess light or glare. |
| a calculus or concretion found in the stomach or intestines of certain animals, esp. ruminants, formerly reputed to be an effective remedy for poison. |
Dictionary.com's 21st Century Lexicon
| Main Entry: | agreeance |
| Part of Speech: | n |
| Definition: | the act of agreeing |
| Example: | Usage of the site constitutes agreeance with these terms. |
| Usage: | considered obsolete and a bastardization of 'agreement' |
Etymonline
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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