/disport-meaning

/disport/

-) Verb.

-) Pronunciation and accent: dɪspɔət.

-) Etymology: from Old French desporter (to divert, please), which is analysed into des- (prefix implying the idea of “apart” or “away”, from latin dis-) + porter (to bear). Porter is a derived from Latin portare (to bear).

-) Third-person singular simple present: she/he disports.

-) Preterite tense, preterite participle: disported.

-) Present participle: disporting.

-) Documented since 1300.

-) Transitive and obsolete: to divert (an animated being) from sadness, ennui, or the like.

-) Reflexively: to behave sportively, as if to distract one’s mind from what is unpleasant; to perform an action, only for pleasure.

-) Synonyms for “disport”: to cheer oneself, divert onself, amuse oneself, enjoy oneself, to comport oneself, exult, sport.

-) Translation: divertirse, in Spanish; divertirsi, in Italian; se divertir, in French.

-) Antonyms: to mope, hurt oneself, afflict oneself, trouble oneself.

… the princess would bid her guard of bowmen retire to a distance, to insure her from approach; and while her ladies and pages disported themselves in the forest, would proceed onwards with her two favourite companions…

Grace Frances… The Courtier… 1839

The cold had driven away the lively little colony of bees, birds, and butterflies which have been seen disporting themselves about the bright white cauldron.

R. Burton… To the Gold Coast… 1863

… in the immediately preceding period, when the sub-tropical elephant, rhinoceros, and hippopotamus, disported themselves in the lignite woods of Middle Europe, have traces of mankind been found.

Popular Science, 1873

Numberless water-fowls, including geese, ducks of various kinds, several varieties of water-hens and ibises, disported themselves in its icy waters, or flew away, screaming, on our approach.

George Squier… Peru… 1877

-) With the preposition “with” + a noun or a gerund, designative of what is used to be sportive:

He that purposes to disport himself with killing doves, and other birds perched upon trees, must have bolts all of equal weight.

G. Hansard… The book of archery… 1840

… their elders disport themselves with cards, bagatelle, and the excitement of a sing-song meeting.

G. Sala… Gaslight and Daylight… 1859

-) Intransitively: to behave sportively, as if to distract one’s mind from what is unpleasant; to perform an action, with the only purpose of enjoying.

… the mind disports with different objects and forms, by an assemblage of thoughts and sensations.

R. Sullivan… A view of Nature… 1794

… she was disporting into an elaborate ridicule of some honest gentleman…

T. Hook… Cousin William… 1828

… we disported in the water.

J. Stepney… Leaves from the diary… 1854

-) Other English words derived from Latin portare: comport, comportment, deport, deported, deportable, deportation, deportee, deportment, export, exported, exporting, exportable, exportation, exporter, import (noun, verb), importability, importable, importance, important, importantly, importation, imported, importee, importer, importing, unimportant, unimportance, unimported, port (= mien), port (verb), portable, portability, portableness, portage (noun, verb), portatile, portation, portative, portée, porter, portership, portfolio, report, reported, reportedly, reportability, reportable, reportage, reportative, reporter, reporterage, reporting, reportless, reportorial, reportorially, reportship, unreported, unreportable, support (noun, verb), supportable, supportability, supportableness, supportably, supportative, supported, supporter, supporting, supportingly, supportive, supportiveness, supportless, supportlessly, supportress, unsupportable, unsupportableness, unsupportably, unsupported, unsupportedly, unsupportedness, unsupporting, transport (noun, verb), transportability, transportable, transportableness, transportation, transportative, transported, transportedly, transportedness, transportee, transporter, transporting, transportingly, transportive, untransported, untransportable, disporting, disportive, disportively, disportment, sport (noun, verb), sported, sportability, sportance, sporter, sportful, sportfully, sportfulness, sportiness, sporting, sportingly, sportive, sportively, sportiveness, sportless, sportling, sportsman, sportsmanlike, sportsmanly, sportsmanliness, sportsmanship, sportswoman, sporty.