tenor的词源

英文词源

tenor: tenor: [13] Latin tenor was derived from the verb tenēre ‘hold’ (source also of English tenacious, tenant, etc), and so etymologically denoted ‘that which is held to’, hence a ‘continuous course’. This evolved in due course into the ‘general sense or import’ of a piece of speech or writing, in which sense English acquired it via Anglo- Norman tenur. The musical term tenor, which is basically the same word, arrived in the 14th century via Italian tenore and Old French tenor. It denotes etymologically the voice that ‘holds’ the melodic line.
=> tenant
tenor (n.): c. 1300, "general meaning, prevailing course, purpose, drift," from Old French tenor "substance, contents, meaning, sense; tenor part in music" (13c. Modern French teneur), from Latin tenorem (nominative tenor) "a course," originally "continuance, uninterrupted course, a holding on," from tenere "to hold" (see tenet). The musical sense of "high male voice" is attested from late 14c. in English, so-called because the sustained melody (canto fermo) was carried by the tenor's part. Meaning "singer with a tenor voice" is from late 15c. As an adjective in this sense from 1520s.

ten-,持有，保持，维持，-or,人。用于指保持某一音域的人，引申词义男高音，男高音歌手。

该词的英语词源请访问找单词词源英文版：tenor 词源，tenor 含义。