20kWEB: Origin of the word Abbreviate. Etymology of the word Abbreviate. Etymology Dictionary.

ABBREVIATE, to shorten. (L.) Fabyan has abreuyatyd in the sense of abridged; Henry III, an. 26 (R.) Elyot has 'an abbreuiate, called of the Grekes and Latines epitoma;' The Governor, b. iii. c. 24 (R.)—Lat. abbreuiare (pp. abbreuiatus), to shorten, found in Vegetius (Brachet).—Lat. ad, to; and breuis, short. See Brief, and Abridge. Der. abbreviat-ion, -or. Doublet, abridge. ¶ Here adbreuiare would at once become abbreuiare; cf. Ital. abbonare, to improve, abbassare, to lower, abbellare, to embellish, where the prefix is plainly ad. ➩ The formation of verbs in -ate in English is curious; a good example is create, plainly equivalent to Lat. creare; but it does not follow that create was necessarily formed from the pp. creatus. Such verbs in -ate can be formed directly from Lat. verbs in -are, by mere analogy with others. All that was necessary was to initiate such a habit of formation. This habit plainly began with words like advocate, which was originally a past participle used as a noun, and, secondarily, was used as a verb by the very common English habit whereby substantives are so freely used as verbs.

Etymology Dictionary

Origin of the word ABBREVIATE. Etymology of the word ABBREVIATE.