Discomfit
Pronunciation
- IPA: /dɪsˈkʌmfɪt/
Origin
From Old French desconfit, past participle of desconfire ("to undo, to destroy"), from des- ("completely"), from Latin dis- + confire ("to make"), from Latin conficio ("to finish up, to destroy"), from com- ("with, together") + facio ("to do, to make").
Later sense of “to embarrass, to disconcert†due to confusion with unrelated discomfort.
American Heritage 2006
Full definition of discomfit
Verb
- (archaic) To defeat completely; to rout.
- 1611, Bible: King James Version, Exodus 17:13,And Joshua discomfited Amalek and his people with the edge of the sword.
- Edmund SpenserAnd his proud foes discomfit in victorious field.
- To defeat the plans or hopes of; to frustrate.
- 1886, Andrew Lang The Mark Of Cain, chapter 10,In these disguises, Maitland argued, he would certainly avoid recognition, and so discomfit any mischief planned by the enemies of Margaret.
- (proscribed) To embarrass greatly; to confuse; to perplex; to disconcert.
- 1853, Charlotte Brontë, Villette, chapter 20,She is a pretty, silly girl: but are you apprehensive that her titter will discomfit the old lady?
- 1898, Winston Churchill, The Celebrity Chapter 5, Then we relapsed into a discomfited silence, and wished we were anywhere else. But Miss Thorn relieved the situation by laughing aloud, and with such a hearty enjoyment that instead of getting angry and more mortified we began to laugh ourselves, and instantly felt better.
Usage notes
While widely used to mean “to embarrass, to disconcertâ€, prescriptive usage considers this a mistake (confusion with discomfort), and restrict discomfit to meaning “to defeatâ€.
“Discomfit zoneâ€, January 4, 2008, Grammarphobia