Fervor

How to spell fervor

6 letters · 2 syllables

How to pronounce fervor

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does fervor mean?

1. nounIntense and passionate feeling or enthusiasm.

Fervor in a sentence

• The volunteers tackled the cleanup with genuine fervor.

• She spoke about the new policy with surprising fervor.

Where does fervor come from?

Language of origin: Latin

This word traces back to the Latin noun fervor, meaning 'heat' or 'boiling', which was formed from the verb fervere, literally 'to boil, seethe, or glow with heat'. The Romans applied it both to physically hot, bubbling liquids and, figuratively, to the burning intensity of human emotion. English took the word up in the 14th century through Old French, where the spelling appeared as fervour, and for centuries the heat metaphor and the emotional sense travelled together. The same fervere root still simmers inside the everyday words 'fervent' and 'effervescent' (drinks that bubble up). The American spelling drops the British 'u' to give 'fervor', following the broader pattern that also produced color and honor, and that missing 'u' is the main thing a writer has to remember.

How the word is built

• ferv- (from Latin fervere: to boil, glow)
• -or (noun suffix denoting a state or quality)

British and American spelling

Fervor is the American spelling. British English spells it fervour.