pave (v.)

early 14c., paven, "to cover (a street) with blocks of stone, tiles, or similar hard material set regularly and firmly in place," from Old French paver "to pave" (12c.), perhaps a back-formation from Old French pavement or else from Vulgar Latin *pavare, from Latin pavire "to beat, ram, tread down," from PIE root *pau- (2) "to cut, strike, stamp." Related: Paved; paving. The figurative sense of "make smooth or easy" (in pave the way "prepare the way for something to come") is attested from 1580s.