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cap·o·ei·ra

(kăp′ō-ārə, kä′p-ārä)

A martial art of Brazilian origin that is based around a rhythmic, dancelike movement.

[Brazilian Portuguese, perhaps from capoeira, cultivated field that has reverted to forest or scrubland (perhaps in reference to the origins of the martial art in gatherings held by slaves and poor rural communities), from Tupí kopera (influenced by Tupí kaa, scrubland) : ko, clearing, agricultural field cleared in a forest : pera, that once was.]

Indo-European & Semitic Roots Appendices

Thousands of entries in the dictionary include etymologies that trace their origins back to reconstructed proto-languages. You can obtain more information about these forms in our online appendices:

Indo-European Roots

Semitic Roots

The Indo-European appendix covers nearly half of the Indo-European roots that have left their mark on English words. A more complete treatment of Indo-European roots and the English words derived from them is available in our Dictionary of Indo-European Roots.

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