discard
/dɪˈskɑːrd/
verb
Origin
Old French
des- + carte — away/off + card
Overview
Meaning Now
- To get rid of something that is no longer useful or desirable.
- To throw away or reject an item from one's hand, specifically in card games.
Literal older meaning
to cast away from the cards
Language path
Old French → Middle English → English
Earliest form
discarder
Earliest period
16th century
Journey
The term originated in the 16th century from card games, where a player would throw away unwanted cards from their hand. It later evolved into a general term for discarding or throwing away any unwanted object.
Evolution
- Old French
descarter
“to remove from cards”
- 16th-century English
discard
“to cast off or reject”
Initially used in the context of card games before broadening to general usage.
Connections
Word parts
dis-
prefix
away or apart
card
root
playing card
Related across languages
French
écarter
to move aside or discard
Explore next
Related to discard
External references use DefinedTerm semantics.