Dever
/ˈdiːvər/noun
A Scots or archaic verb meaning to work hard, exert oneself, or perform one’s duty.
Did you know?Dever is related to the language of obligation behind words such as debt and duty, reflecting the old idea that responsibility is something literally owed.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*deh₃-
“To give; the ancestral root associated with giving or owing.”
Classical Latin
Latin
dēbēre
“To owe; to be obligated or under an obligation.”
Old French
Old French
dever / devoir
“Duty, obligation; also the act of owing.”
Middle English
English
devoir
“Duty, obligation, or a required task.”
Scots
Scots
dever
“To work hard, exert oneself, or do one’s duty.”
Modern English
English
dever
“A rare or dialectal form, chiefly encountered in Scots or historical writing.”