Origin: 1400–50; late ME
furnisshen < OF
furniss-, long s. of
furnir to accomplish, furnish < Gmc; cf. OHG
frumjan to provide
Related forms: fur⋅nish⋅er, noun
Synonyms:
1, 2. rig, outfit, deck out. Furnish, appoint, equip all refer to providing something necessary. Furnish emphasizes the idea of providing necessary or customary services or appliances in living quarters: to furnish board; a room meagerly furnished with a bed, desk, and a wooden chair. Appoint (now found only in well-appointed) means to furnish completely with all requisites or accessories or in an elegant style: a well-appointed house. Equip means to supply with necessary materials or apparatus for some service, action, or undertaking; it emphasizes preparation: to equip a vessel, a soldier.
[fur-nish] 