† difficuladj.

Etymology: Origin uncertain. Perhaps an alteration of difficult adj., with loss of final t perhaps arising from analysis of difficulty n. as a formation in -ty suffix¹, or perhaps from association with difficile adj., some early forms of which are difficult to distinguish from the present word. It is not certain that all of the examples presented here show the same origin.The form deffykel in quot. ?a1450 may rather represent an error for difficult adj., with loss of t arising from misanalysis of word division in the combination difficult to (compare e.g. quot. a1400¹ at difficult adj. 1a). Some later uses may reflect awareness of Old Latin difficul (cited by Nonius from Varro, and listed by some 16th-cent. sources, for instance in various editions of Sir Thomas Elyot's Latin-English dictionary), earlier form of classical Latin difficile , neuter of difficilis difficile adj. (compare simul at the same time (see simultaneous adj.), procul far away (see proculstant n.)), with loss of final e after l ; compare animal animal n. With forms in -cle perhaps compare -cle suffix.