Quail
/kweɪl/noun
To lose courage, confidence, or strength, especially through fear or apprehension.
Did you know?The verb quail originally described physical weakening or collapse before developing its modern emotional sense of shrinking back in fear; its connection to Latin *coagulare* (“to curdle, thicken”) is proposed but uncertain.
Etymological Timeline
Late Latin
Latin
coagulāre
“To cause to curdle or thicken; a proposed, but debated, source of the later verb”
12th Century
Old French
quailler
“To fall, fail, or be subdued”
Circa 1300
Middle English
quailen
“To wither, weaken, or lose strength”
Late 14th Century
Middle English
quailen
“To lose heart or courage”
Modern English
English
quail
“To shrink back or lose courage through fear”