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magnoperate

verb /mæɡˈnɒpəɹeɪt/

  1. To magnify the greatness of (someone or something); to exalt.

    rare, transitive

    [A]fter-ages may rightly admire what noble Mecœnas it was that ſo inchayned the aſpiring wits of this vnderſtanding age to his only cenſure, which will not a little magnoperate the ſplendor of your well knowne Honour, to theſe ſucceeding times.

  2. To act grandly.

    intransitive, rare

    Meanwhile you cannot help liking his [Herbert Beerbohm Tree's] Antony—which, of course, is quite the right frame of mind. There is something large and liberal and genial in the man; you are made to feel that, in [Lord] Byron's phrase, he is used to "magnoperating."

Where it comes from

From Latin magnopere (“exceedingly, greatly; earnestly, vehemently”) + -ate (verb-forming suffix), modelled after operate, further from the univerbation of magnō (ablative neuter singular of magnus (“big, large; (figuratively) great, important”)) + opere (ablative singular of opus (“labour, toil, accomplishment, work; work (of art, literature, etc.)”)), literally “with great zeal, effort, work done”, ultimately from the roots of Proto-Indo-European *méǵh₂s (“big, great”)) and Proto-Indo-European *h₃ep- (“to toil, work; to make; ability; force”)).

Adapted from the Wiktionary entry magnoperate (CC BY-SA 4.0).

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