comfit

noun

com·​fit ˈkəm(p)-fət  ˈkäm(p)- 

: a candy consisting of a piece of fruit, a root (such as licorice), a nut, or a seed coated and preserved with sugar

Word History

Etymology

Middle English confyt, counfyt, comfyte "food item preserved in sugar or syrup, the syrup itself," borrowed from Anglo-French confit (in the phrase en confit "preserved [of fruit]"), noun derivative from past participle of confire "to create, make, prepare, preserve" (continental Old French, "to prepare [a drink], preserve [fruit] in a liquid or sugar"), going back to Latin conficere "to carry out, perform, make, bring about, collect, bring to completion" — more at confect

Note: Gallo-Romance has largely restricted the semantic range of Latin conficere to "prepare, preserve," presumably a narrowing of the classical sense "bring to completion." The vowel i proper to the past participle (< Latin confectus) has been extended through the entire paradigm. Compare confit.

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined above