Vittling

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A term describing the act of providing or preparing food, particularly for a journey or nourishment
2. a word used in the context of sustenance and the provisioning of meals
3. referring to the process of supplying necessary items for eating and survival

Etymology: "Vittling" is the present participle and gerund of "vittle", a verb meaning to supply someone with food. The root word is the older form of "victual", and it shares its history with the Latin "victus", meaning food, sustenance or way of living, from "vivere", to live. The spelling "vittle" is an older, simplified version that people kept in everyday speech long after "victual" became the formal form in writing. The noun "vittles", meaning food, is the form most people encounter, and it is the same word in a different role. The verb sense of providing supplies is the older meaning that the participle carries, so the word has moved from describing a stock of food to describing the act of stocking it.