Victualled

Part of speech: verb

Definitions

1. To have furnished supplies of food to people or communities in need of nourishment
2. To have delivered essential food items to support individuals or groups during periods of deprivation
3. Provided with food and necessary provisions for sustenance

Etymology: The verb "victualled" is simply the past tense of "victual", a word whose spelling has been pulled back toward Latin even though its sound comes from French. The Latin source is "vīctuālia", the neuter plural of an adjective meaning "nutritional", built from "vīctus" (sustenance, diet), which itself comes from "vīvere", "to live". So the word's deep sense is "things that keep you alive." The English word arrived through Anglo-Norman and Old French forms such as "vitaille" and "victaille", meaning food and provisions. Middle English kept the pronunciation of those French forms, while later scribes reshaped the spelling to look Latin, which is why the modern spelling looks more classical than the word sounds. The verb grew from the noun. Middle English "vitailen" meant to provide someone, a castle, or a ship with food and supplies, and it was also used figuratively for loading a ship with troops and equipment. "Victualled" therefore describes a place or vessel that has been stocked, not simply a person who has eaten.

Synonyms: supplied, provided