Talk:vet

Variation
Lawyer and WABC talk show host Ron Kuby uses the variation "vetted out" as an impressive substitute for the phrase "checked out."Lestrade 18:07, 31 August 2006 (UTC)Lestrade

Etymology for (3) vet (v.)
1) "veto" doesn't mean `to prohibit` - it's the conjugated first-person form of the verb vetare. Veto means, literally, `I forbid`.

2) "Vet", in its verb form, does not derive from "veto".

3) The earliest verb use of "vet" was recorded in 1891 as an abbreviation for the work a veterinarian performs. The original uses were mostly in reference to the process of evaluating a racing horse before a competition.

4) Having blythely discarded the veterinarian-related etymology, subsequent investigation turned up the possibility (especially in light of the "horse race" metaphor for political contests) that it _might_ be an established specialized usage that was promoted to a wider government/public policy arena, especially if 3) above can be documented, i.e., that it is indeed common (and prior) usage in horse racing. It'd be interesting to see that editor's source. How about it, anonymous? Mrnatural 21:31, 29 January 2012 (UTC)

5) One online reference (http://www.rpifs.com/duediligence.htm) states that vetting is an "off-shore" (i.e., non-American) synonym for [exercising] "due diligence" (appropriate investigation) in financial transactions. Mrnatural 21:31, 29 January 2012 (UTC)

6) Thus it seems distinctly possible that the true etymology of vetting/evaluation as exemplified in modern usage lies in (relatively recent?) borrowing from some other field of endeavor, or possibly from another language. Time to find out if the OED has additional guidance... Mrnatural 21:31, 29 January 2012 (UTC)

7) Conjecture, from (see 🇨🇬). Miloscu 19:09, 15 January 2024 (UTC)

RFV discussion
Abbreviation of veterano and of veterinário. Only found one non-durable cite in Google Groups. — Ungoliant (Falai) 22:54, 21 April 2013 (UTC)
 * Failed. — Ungoliant (Falai) 21:03, 19 September 2013 (UTC)