• Per-

    Origin 1

    Borrowing from la per and per-.

    Full definition of per-

    Prefix

    1. (non-productive) In verbs: denoting the sense "through", as in perforate.
    2. (non-productive) In verbs: denoting the sense "thoroughly", as in perfect.
    3. (non-productive) In verbs: denoting the sense "to destruction", as in pervert.
    4. (non-productive) In adjectives and adverbs: denoting the sense "extremely", as in perfervid.
    5. (chemistry) Forming nouns and adjectives denoting the maximum proportion of one element in a compound, as in peroxide.
    6. (chemistry) Added to the name of an element in a polyatomic ion denote the number of that element (usually four).

    Derived terms

    Origin 2

    Borrowing from fro per (modern French par).

    Prefix

    1. (non-productive) Denoting the sense "by" or "per", as in perchance or perhaps.----
    © Wiktionary