From Middle High German āber, from Old High German ābar (“sunny, warm, dry”), from ā- (“from, away”, prefix) + bar (“bare”), likely via a defunct verb *ābarēn, *ābarōn (“to lay bare, expose”). Alternatively, from a verb *āberan (“to not bear, not carry”). Sense likely influenced by unrelated Latin aprīcus due to superficial similarity of form and meaning.