courier
UK[ˈkʊr.i.ə]US[ˈkɝː.i.ɚ]
n
a person or company that is paid to take letters, packages, or goods somewhere, often quickly
n
a person who carries official messages, especially for a government or military organization
Etymology
the word 'courier' entered english in the late 14th century from the anglo-french 'courreour', meaning 'a runner, messenger'. this, in turn, derived from the old french 'correor', which came from the vulgar latin 'currere', meaning 'to run', itself from the classical latin verb 'currere'. the semantic logic is direct: the core function of a runner or one who runs is preserved in the modern meaning of a person who carries and delivers messages or goods. the latin root 'currere' is prolific, giving english many related words like 'current', 'course', and 'occur', all connected to the idea of running or flowing.
Analysis
this word is a loanword adopted as a single unit into english. it does not contain productive morphemes from the perspective of modern english word formation.
Examples
the contract was delivered by a special courier this morning.
she works as a bicycle courier in the city center.
diplomatic couriers carry sensitive documents between embassies.