As a verb, it means to move something or someone from one place, person, or situation to another. As a noun, it is the act of moving or the document or ticket that allows this move.
It comes from Latin 'transferre', from 'trans' meaning 'across' and 'ferre' meaning 'to carry'. The core idea is carrying something across a boundary.
Today we transfer money, data, music, even emotions between people, all using the same basic 'carry across' idea. Every 'file transfer' or 'school transfer' is a tiny border crossing, even if the border is just between folders or classrooms.
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