abhor

C2 Topic:Emotions & Feelings

US /æbˈhɔɹ/ UK /əbˈhɔː/ See IPA manual

verb Freq #33713

Meanings

1

verb
To hate something deeply; to find it utterly disgusting.

I absolutely abhor being stuck in traffic for hours.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 verb · to hate something deeply;... detest hate loathe execrate

Word family

Forms abhorredabhors

Derived forms abhorrableabhorration

Related forms abhorredabhorrence abhorrency abhorrent abhorrently abhorrer abhorrible abhorring

Etymology

First attested in 1449, from Middle English abhorren, borrowed from Middle French abhorrer, from Latin abhorreō (“shrink away from in horror”), from ab- (“from”) + horreō (“stand aghast, bristle with fear”).

*ǵʰers- Proto-Indo-European abhorren Middle English abhorrer Middle French abhorreō Latin

View etymology graph ->

Topics

Emotions & Feelings Word Formation & Derivatives

# abhor

**Type:** Word
**Level:** C2
**Part of speech:** verb
**IPA (US):** æbˈhɔɹ
**IPA (UK):** əbˈhɔː
**Frequency rank:** 33713

## Meanings
1. To hate something deeply; to find it utterly disgusting.

## Examples
- I absolutely abhor being stuck in traffic for hours.

## Derived Forms
- abhorrable
- abhorration

## Related Forms
- abhorred
- abhorrence
- abhorrency
- abhorrent
- abhorrently
- abhorrer
- abhorrible
- abhorring

## Roots and Affixes
- Root: *ǵʰers-
- Root: abhorren
- Root: abhorrer
- Root: abhorreō

## Etymology
First attested in 1449, from Middle English abhorren, borrowed from Middle French abhorrer, from Latin abhorreō (“shrink away from in horror”), from ab- (“from”) + horreō (“stand aghast, bristle with fear”).

## AI Etymology
Abhor is first attested in 1449, from Middle English abhorren, borrowed from Middle French abhorrer, from Latin abhorreō (“shrink away from in horror”), from ab- (“from”) + horreō (“stand aghast, bristle with fear”). The analysis is mainly morphological: the modern verbal form is built from the named base and affix. Important recorded forms include *ǵʰers- (Proto-Indo-European), abhorren (Middle English), abhorrer (Middle French), and abhorreō (Latin). Current senses include to hate something deeply; to find it utterly disgusting. The wider family includes derived forms such as abhorrable and abhorration and related words such as abhorred, abhorrence, abhorrency, abhorrent, and abhorrently.

## Topics
- Emotions & Feelings
- Word Formation & Derivatives

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