, 3 26 DIS'^UISITI NS on the 



fought for the word. From, in Saxon, \ifram and fr a. This laft 

 appears plainly the root, and it is as evidently a defcendant of 

 the Gothic fairra, from. Now this Gothic fairra was undoubt- 

 edly alfo the root of our adjective far, equivalent to diftant or re- 

 mote ; and from this root proceeds likewife the German Fremde, & 

 flranger. Here, then, we have the fame analogy which has been 

 already traced out in the Greek ; the root of our Englifh from 

 being an adjective expremng remote, and the prepoiition of courfe 

 meaning juft — remote point, or diftant point. 



It may be added, upon the fubject of dvro; that this prepoii- 

 tion, or rather its afpirated form cc<p, is, according to the beft ety- 

 mologifts, the root of the Englifh adverb off, originally affj and 

 the precife meaning of this is dijiant or remote, — off, as is well 

 known, being quite a different word, and from a different fource, 

 from the prepoiition of, a word radically and properly denoting 

 clafs, kind or fpecies, though the two have not always been 

 iufficiently diflinguifhed by lexicographers. 



A ICC. 



There can be little doubt, I think, that the prepoiition hid 

 muft have been clofely related to the verb hiu. Now hia in com- 

 mon ufe fignifies to drive out, or drive away. From many of its 

 cognates and derivatives, however, it is evident, that it muft 

 have fignified alfo to divide, to fptit, or to cleave. The original 

 radical idea expreffed by it, therefore, from which both thefe 

 took their rife, may fairly be conjectured to have been to bore, 

 to pierce, to penetrate. From this verb hia appears to have come 

 a verbal adjective hiog, hix, hiov, fignifying, from the verb, pierced 

 or penetrated, fometimes divided ; and, when applied to furfaces 

 or fpaces, by a very natural and obvious reftriction, paffed over, 

 or croffed. To the neuter plural, or feminine fingular of this 

 adjective, fome common word, fuch as ygctppri, "xjugct, enpeict, or 

 the like, being at nrftufually joined, as in other cafes, and after- 

 wards 



