Usurpacioun

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. The act of taking power, a throne, or a position by force or without any lawful claim to it
2. Seizing control of a rank, office, or authority that rightfully belongs to someone else
3. Wrongful appropriation of a crown, title, or authority by one who has no legitimate right to it

Etymology: Before it meant seizing a throne or someone else's property, the Latin verb "usurpare" could mean simply to make use of something. Roman writers used it for employing a word in speech, and the sense of taking something into use is built into its parts: "usu," from "usus" (use), plus "rapere," to seize. The bad sense grew from that root, as taking hold of something through use came to mean taking hold of it wrongfully. The noun "usurpacioun" is a Middle English spelling of "usurpation," coming through Anglo-French "usurpacion" from Latin "usurpatio." The Latin noun carried the same range as its verb, from ordinary use to the illegal seizure of power or property. English kept the sense of illegitimate taking. The spelling with "-acioun" reflects the French ending "-acion," which in Middle English was often written "-acioun" before the modern "-ation" form became standard. The change is one of spelling, not meaning.