Fr. poussif, from Lat. pulsus, throbbing. It was formerly used also in connection with horses—
"You must warrant this horse clear of the glanders, and pursyness."
(The Gentleman's Dictionary, 1705.)
ARQUEBUS—JAUNTY
Arquebus, Fr. arquebuse, is a doublet of hackbut, Old Fr. haquebute, "an haquebut, or arquebuse; a caliver" (Cotgrave). The corruption is due to arcus, bow. Both arquebus and hackbut are common in Scott—
"His arms were halbert, axe, or spear,
A cross-bow there, a hackbut here,
A dagger-knife, and brand."
(Marmion, v. 3.)
The origin is Du. haakbus, hook-gun, the second element of which appears in blunderbuss. The first part of this word has undergone so many popular transformations that it is difficult to say which was the original form. Ludwig has Donner-büchs, Blunder-büchs, oder Muszketon, "a thunder-box; a blunder-buss; a musketoon; a wide-mouthed brass-gun, carrying about twenty pistol bullets at once." It was also called in German Plantier-büchs, from plantieren, to plant, set up, because fired from a rest. Du. bus, like Ger. Büchse, means both "box" and "gun." In the bushes, or axle-boxes, of a cart-wheel, we have the same word. The ultimate origin is Greek πύξος, the box-tree, whence also the learned word pyx. Fr. boîte, box, is cognate, and Fr. boussole, mariners' compass, is from the Italian diminutive bossola, "a boxe that mariners keepe their compasse in. Also taken for the compasse" (Florio).
Scissors were formerly cizars (cf. Fr. ciseaux), connected with Lat. cædere, to cut. The modern spelling is due to association with Lat. scissor, a cutter, tailor, from scindere, to cut. Runagate is well known to be a corrupt doublet of renegade, one who has "denied" his faith. Recreant, the present participle of Old Fr. recreire, Vulgar Lat. *recredere, to change one's faith, contains very much the same idea; cf. miscreant, lit. unbeliever. Jaunty, spelt janty by Wycherley and genty by Burns, is Fr. gentil, wrongly brought into connection with jaunt.