livery
- livery
livery (
n.)
c.1300, "
household allowance of any kind (food, provisions, clothing) to retainers or servants," from
Anglo-Fr. livere (late 13c.),
O.Fr. livrée, "
allowance, ration, pay," originally "
(clothes) delivered by a master to his retinue," from
fem. pp. of
livrer "
to dispense, deliver, hand over," from
L. liberare (see
LIBERATE (
Cf. liberate)). The sense later was reduced to "
servants' rations" and "
provender for horses" (mid-15c.). The former led to the meaning "
distinctive clothing given to servants" (early 14c.); the latter now is obsolete except in
livery stable (1705). Related:
Liveried.
Etymology dictionary.
2014.
Synonyms:
Look at other dictionaries:
Livery — Liv er*y, n.; pl. {Liveries}. [OE. livere, F. livr[ e]e, formerly, a gift of clothes made by the master to his servants, prop., a thing delivered, fr. livrer to deliver, L. liberare to set free, in LL., to deliver up. See {Liberate}.] 1. (Eng.… … The Collaborative International Dictionary of English
livery — liv‧e‧ry [ˈlɪvəri] noun [countable, uncountable] BrE MARKETING the colours and designs used by a company on its property and vehicles: • The rail company s carriages were repainted in a two tone brown livery. * * * Ⅰ. livery UK US /ˈlɪvəri/ noun… … Financial and business terms
livery — ► NOUN (pl. liveries) 1) a special uniform worn by a servant, an official, or a member of a City Company. 2) a distinctive design and colour scheme used on the vehicles or products of a company. 3) the members of a livery company collectively. ●… … English terms dictionary
Livery — Liv er*y, v. t. To clothe in, or as in, livery. Shak. [1913 Webster] … The Collaborative International Dictionary of English
livery — [liv′ər ē] n. pl. liveries [ME, allowance of food, gift of clothes to a servant, thing delivered < OFr livree, pp. of livrer, to deliver < L liberare, to LIBERATE] 1. an identifying uniform such as was formerly worn by feudal retainers or… … English World dictionary
Livĕry — (engl.), 1) die Gesammtheit der Londoner Bürger, welche das Wahlrecht besitzen; 2) so v.w. Zunft … Pierer's Universal-Lexikon
Livery — (engl., spr. liwwĕri), die Gesamtheit der das Wahlrecht genießenden Mitglieder (liverymen) der großen Gilden in der City von London. L. Companies (eigentlich Livreegesellschaften), so genannt, weil ihre Mitglieder die Livree der betreffenden… … Meyers Großes Konversations-Lexikon
Livery — Livery, englisch, die Gesammtheit der wahlberechtigten Londoner Bürger; Zunft … Herders Conversations-Lexikon
Livery — A livery is a uniform or other sign worn in a non military context on a person or object (such as an airplane or vehicle) to denote a relationship with a person or corporate body, often by using elements of the heraldry relating to that person or … Wikipedia
livery — 1. n. (pl. ies) 1 a distinctive clothing worn by a member of a City Company or by a servant. b membership of a City livery company. 2 a distinctive guise or marking or outward appearance (birds in their winter livery). 3 a distinctive colour… … Useful english dictionary