To weaken or remove the strength and courage from someone or something.
From Old French 'enerve' and Latin 'enervare,' where 'en-' means 'to cause to be' and 'nervus' means 'nerve or strength.' The word literally means to remove one's nerves or vital force.
This is an archaic cousin of the modern word 'enervate'—both mean the same thing, but 'enerve' fell out of fashion, showing how languages naturally slim down their vocabulary over centuries.
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