prescribev.

Etymology: < classical Latin praescrībere to inscribe on the front, to write beforehand, to describe in writing beforehand, to lay down, appoint, (in law) to bring an exception against, demur to, in post-classical Latin also to limit (early 3rd cent. in Tertullian), to predict (4th cent.), to claim by lapse of time (1265, 1331 in British sources), to claim by prescription, to make a claim on the basis of prescription (13th cent.), to advise or order the use of (a medicine, remedy, treatment, etc.) (1528 in the passage translated in quot. 1533 at sense 3a) < prae- pre- prefix + scrībere to write (see scribe n.¹). In legal uses in branch II. largely after prescription n.¹; with sense 5 compare Law French prescriver (1456 or earlier in this sense). Compare Spanish prescribir (late 14th cent., earliest in legal use), Portuguese prescrever (1446 in legal use, 1689 in general sense), Italian prescrivere (a1321 in legal use in sense ‘to set a term or limit’, late 16th cent. in general sense). Compare prescrive v. and its French etymon prescrire , and also earlier prescription n.¹ With the β. forms compare discussion at prescription n.¹ and at pre- prefix. With the γ. forms compare discussion at pre- prefix; in some instances such forms perhaps result from confusion with proscribe v. (compare prescription n.²). Compare also:1530 J. Palsgrave Lesclarcissement 668/1 I proscrybe (Lydgate) for I prescrybe.