retriever
UK[rɪˈtriːvə]US[rɪˈtriːvər]
n
a type of dog, originally bred for finding and bringing back shot birds or other game.
n
a person or thing that retrieves something.
Morpheme Breakdown
re
triev
er
re
again
triev
find
er
agent suffix
Etymology
the word 'retriever' is built upon the verb 'retrieve', which entered english in the 15th century from middle french 'retrouver', meaning 'to find again'. this french term itself combines the latin prefix 're-' (back, again) with 'trover' (to find, compose), a word of uncertain but likely gallo-romance origin. the agent suffix '-er' was then added in english, creating a noun that literally means 'one who finds again' or 'one who brings back'. this perfectly describes the dog's primary function: to locate and recover game for a hunter.
Analysis
Structure: re (again) + triev (find) + er (agent suffix)
re- (Latin prefix meaning 'again' or 'back'), triev- (from Old French 'trover', meaning 'to find'), -er (Old English agent suffix, meaning 'one who does').
Examples
the golden retriever is one of the most popular family dogs due to its friendly and tolerant attitude.
he sent his best retriever to fetch the duck from the pond.
the software acts as a data retriever, scanning the archive for specific file types.