Etherify

Part of speech: verb

Definitions

1. To change an alcohol or acid into an ether compound ; to expose or mix a substance with ether so that it is anesthetized
2. Converting a chemical such as an alcohol into an ether ; treating a material with ether, often to dull sensation or induce unconsciousness
3. Transforming an alcohol into an ether by chemical reaction ; subjecting something to ether to produce numbness or sleep

Etymology: "Etherify" is a plain formation: the noun "ether" with the verb-forming suffix "-ify", meaning to turn something into ether or to make something ethereal. The noun itself reaches English through Latin "aether" from Ancient Greek "aithēr", a word tied to the upper air, the bright, pure sky above the lower atmosphere that ancient thinkers imagined as a fifth substance beyond earth, water, air and fire. The suffix carries its own long journey. It descends from Latin "-ificare", built from "facere" (to make), and passed through Old French "-ifier" into Middle English "-ifien" before settling as the modern "-ify". So "etherify" literally means "to make into ether," a construction that follows the same pattern as "glorify" or "simplify."