power

power
{{11}}power (n.) c.1300, "ability; ability to act or do; strength, vigor, might," especially in battle; "efficacy; control, mastery, lordship, dominion; legal power or authority; authorization; military force, an army," from Anglo-Fr. pouair, O.Fr. povoir, noun use of the infinitive, "to be able," earlier podir (9c.), from V.L. *potere, from L. potis "powerful" (see POTENT (Cf. potent)).
Whatever some hypocritical ministers of government may say about it, power is the greatest of all pleasures. It seems to me that only love can beat it, and love is a happy illness that can't be picked up as easily as a Ministry. [Stendhal "de l'Amour," 1822]
Meaning "specific ability or capacity" is from early 15c. Meaning "a state or nation with regard to international authority or influence" is from 1726. Phrase the powers that be is from Rom. xiii:1. As a statement wishing good luck, more power to (someone) is recorded from 1842.
{{12}}power (v.) "to supply with power," 1898, from POWER (Cf. power) (n.). Related: Powered; powering.

Etymology dictionary. 2014.

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  • power — pow·er n 1: capability of acting or of producing an effect parties of unequal bargaining power 2 a: authority or capacity to act that is delegated by law or constitution often used in pl. commerce power often cap C&P: the power delegated to… …   Law dictionary

  • Power — may refer to*any ability to effect change;political or social * Power (philosophy) ** Political power, power held by a person or group in a country s political system ** Reserve power, a power exercised by a head of state in certain exceptional… …   Wikipedia

  • power — is the concept which is at the heart of the subject of social stratification . It is therefore not surprising that we have seen so many disputes concerning its meaning (including disputes about what particular sociologists meant when they used… …   Dictionary of sociology

  • power — n 1 Power, force, energy, strength, might, puissance mean the ability to exert effort for a purpose. Power is the most general of these terms and denotes an ability to act or be acted upon, to effect something, or to affect or be affected by… …   New Dictionary of Synonyms

  • Power — Pow er, n. [OE. pouer, poer, OF. poeir, pooir, F. pouvoir, n. & v., fr. LL. potere, for L. posse, potesse, to be able, to have power. See {Possible}, {Potent}, and cf. {Posse comitatus}.] 1. Ability to act, regarded as latent or inherent; the… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • POWER — (сокр. от англ. Performance Optimization With Enhanced RISC)  микропроцессорная архитектура с ограниченным набором команд (RISC), разработанная и развиваемая компанией IBM. Название позже было расшифровано как Performance Optimization… …   Википедия

  • power — [pou′ər] n. [ME pouer < OFr poeir, earlier poter, orig. inf. < VL * potere, to be able, for L posse, to be able: see POTENT] 1. ability to do, act, or produce 2. a specific ability or faculty [the power of hearing] 3. great ability to do,… …   English World dictionary

  • Power — (englisch für Kraft, Macht, Energie) oder Teststärke beschreibt in der Statistik die Aussagekraft eines statistischen Tests. Die Teststärke gibt an, mit welcher Wahrscheinlichkeit ein Signifikanztest zugunsten einer spezifischen… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Power — Saltar a navegación, búsqueda Power (en castellano: poder) puede referirse a: Contenido 1 Cine 2 Apellido 3 Informática 4 Véase también …   Wikipedia Español

  • Power FM — Allgemeine Informationen Empfang analog terrestrisch Webradio Sendegebiet Bulgarien (UKW) …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • power — ► NOUN 1) the ability to do something or act in a particular way. 2) the capacity to influence other people or the course of events. 3) a right or authority given or delegated to a person or body. 4) political authority or control. 5) physical… …   English terms dictionary

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