traught
/trɔːt/
adjective
Origin
English
distraught — distracted, agitated
Overview
Meaning Now
- An obsolete or non-standard term sometimes used to mean 'drawn' or 'pulled', often treated as the antonym of 'distraught'.
Literal older meaning
drawn or pulled
Language path
Proto-Indo-European → Latin → Middle English → English
Earliest form
traught
Earliest period
17th century
Journey
Traught is a classic example of a 'back-formation'. Because 'distraught' looks like it contains the negative prefix 'dis-', speakers have occasionally inferred that the remaining part, 'traught', must exist as a positive state (the opposite of being distracted or agitated).
Evolution
- Latin
trahere
“to draw, pull”
- Middle English
distraught
“distracted, torn asunder”
Past participle of distract.
- Modern English
traught
“drawn, calm (humorous/back-formation)”
Back-formation from distraught assuming 'dis-' was a prefix.
Connections
Word parts
traught
root
drawn or pulled
Related across languages
Latin
tractus
drawn
Explore next
Related to traught
External references use DefinedTerm semantics.