|
|
|
|
Etymology is the study of the origin of words. If you have any additions, please let me know by sending an e-mail. Source: http://www.etymonline.com/
O.E. bat, from P.Gmc. *bait- (cf. O.N. beit), possibly from PIE base *bheid- "to split" (see fissure), with the sense of making a boat by hollowing out a tree trunk; or it may be an extension of the name for a part of a ship. c.1450, from late O.E. batswegen, from bat "boat" + O.N. sveinn "boy" (see swain). Phonetic spelling bo'sun is attested from 1868. "large Eskimo boat," c.1743, from Eskimo umiaq "an open skin boat." Said by 18c.-19c. sources to be a "woman's boat," as opposed to the kayak, which was worked exclusively by men. "small boat," 1575, from Fr. esquif (1549), from It. schifo "little boat," from a Gmc. source (e.g. O.H.G. scif "boat;" see ship (n.)). Originally the small boat of a ship. "large flat-bottomed boat," 1780, from Du. schouw "a ferry boat, punt," from M.Du. scouwe, related to O.E. scaldan, O.S. scaldan "to push (a boat) from shore." 1300, "small seagoing vessel with sails," from O.Fr. barge, from M.L. barga, from L. *barica, from Gk. baris "Egyptian boat," from Coptic bari "small boat." Meaning "flat-bottomed freight boat" dates from 1480. The verb form barge into dates from 1830s, Amer.Eng. 1916 (said to have been in use from 1913), partial translation of Ger. U-boot, short for Unterseeboot, lit. "undersea boat." 1471, from Scottish dreg-boat "boat for dredging," or M.Du. dregghe "drag-net," one possibly from the other but hard to tell which came first; probably ult. from root of drag. The verb is attested from 1508. 1652, name of a boat race among gondoliers held on the Grand Canal in Venice, from It. (Venetian dialect) regatta, lit. "contention for mastery," from regattare "to compete, haggle, sell at retail," possibly from recatare. The general meaning of "boat race, yacht race" is usually considered to have begun with a race on the Thames by that name June 23, 1775 (cf. OED), but there is evidence that it was used as early as 1768. "baby carriage," 1884, shortening of perambulator (q.v.), perhaps influenced by pram "flat-bottomed boat" (1548), from O.N. pramr, from Balto-Slavic (cf. Pol. pram "boat," Rus. poromu "ferryboat"). "flat-bottomed boat," O.E. punt, probably an ancient survival of British L. ponto "flat-bottomed boat," a kind of Gallic transport (Caesar), also "floating bridge" (Gellius), from pons, pontem "bridge" (see pontoon). 1602, from L. navalis "pertaining to a ship or ships," from navis "ship," from PIE *nau- "boat" (cf. Skt. nauh, acc. navam "ship, boat;" Arm. nav "ship;" Gk. naus "ship," nautes "sailor;" O.Ir. nau "ship;" Welsh noe "a flat vessel;" O.N. nor "ship"). c.1305, from O.Fr. jolif "festive, merry, amorous, pretty" of uncertain origin (cf. It. giulivo "merry, pleasant"), perhaps a Gmc. loan-word from a source akin to O.N. jol "a winter feast" (see yule), or from L. gaudere "to rejoice." Jollification "merrymaking" is from 1809; shortened form jolly led to phrase get (one's) jollies "have fun" (1957). A jolly boat (1727) is probably from Dan. jolle (17c.) or Du. jol (1682), both related to yawl (q.v.); or it may be from M.E. jolywat (1495) "a ship's small boat," of unknown origin. "lowest timber of a ship or boat," 1338, from O.N. kjölr "keel," from P.Gmc. *keluz, of uncertain origin. Etymologists say this is unconnected with the root of M.Du. kiel "ship," O.E. ceol "ship's prow," O.H.G. kiel, Ger. Kiel "ship," but the two words have influenced each other. This other word is said to be from P.Gmc. *keula, from PIE *geul- "rounded vessel." Keel still is used locally in England and U.S. for "flat-bottomed boat," especially on the Tyne. To keel over (1876) is from the nautical image of a ship turning keep-up. Keelhaul is 17c. from Du. kielhalen "to haul under the keel," an old punishment. The verb is 1838, Amer.Eng., from the noun. O.E. scip "ship, boat," from P.Gmc. *skipan (cf. O.N., O.S., Goth. skip, Dan. skib, Swed. skepp, M.Du. scip, Du. schip, O.H.G. skif, Ger. Schiff), perhaps originally "tree cut out or hollowed out," and derived from PIE base *skei- "to cut, split." The O.E. word was used for small craft as well; in 19c., distinct from a boat in having a bowsprit and three masts, each with a lower, top, and topgallant mast. Fr. esquif, It. schifo are Gmc. loan-words. Ship-board "side of a ship" is from c.1200. Ship-shape "properly arranged" first attested 1644. Phrase ships that pass in the night is from Longfellow's poem "Aftermath" (1873). Phrase runs a tight ship is attested from 1971. "small, flat-bottomed boat," 1709, Amer.Eng., perhaps from a West Indian or Central American Indian language. "two-masted fishing boat," used in North Sea fishery, 1356, of unknown origin. It is the source of the name Dogger Bank (1666) for the great banks of shoals in the North Sea. 1728, Anglicized form of salon (q.v.), and originally used interchangeable with it. Meaning large hall in a public place (esp. a passenger boat) is from c.1835, also used of railway cars furnished like drawing rooms. Sense of "public bar" developed by 1841, Amer.Eng. 1757, from Dan. kajak, from Greenland Eskimo kajakka, lit. "small boat of skins." "diving apparatud for reaching great depths," 1947, name coined by its inventor, Swiss "scientific extremist" Prof. Auguste Piccard, from Gk. bathys "deep" + skaphe "boat." "person who tends another," c.1470, probably an agent noun formed from M.E. tenden "attend to" (see tend (2)); later extended to locomotive engineers (1825) and barmen (1883). The meaning "small boat used to attend larger ones" first recorded 1675. 1825, of unknown origin, the first element possibly from cub "pen" (1546); or related to cuddy "small room, cupboard" (1793), originally "small cabin in a boat" (1660). Or perhaps simply a children's made-up word. 1810, from Hindi dingi "small boat," perhaps from Skt. drona-m "wooden trough," related to dru-s "wood, tree." "type of boat used on the Great Lakes," 1812, from Mackinac, port and island in Michigan, from Ojibway Indian mitchimakinak "great turtle." As a type of heavy blanket given to the Indians by the U.S. government, it is attested from 1822. "Chinese sailing ship," 1613, from Port. junco, from Malay jong "ship, large boat" (13c.), probably from Javanese djong. c.1330, "to turn upside down, to overthrow," from over + M.E. whelmen "to turn upside down" (see whelm). Meaning "to submerge completely" is c.1450. Perhaps the connecting notion is a boat, etc., washed over, and overset, by a big wave. Fig. sense of "to bring to ruin" is attested from 1529. 1327, from cock "ship's boat" (from O.Fr. coque "canoe") + swain "boy," from O.N. sveinn "boy, servant." "large boat carried on a warship," 1697, from Port. lancha "barge, launch," apparently from Malay lancharan, from lanchar "quick, agile;" Eng. spelling infl. by launch (v.). 1648, from sub- + marine. The noun meaning "submarine boat" is from 1899. The short form sub is first recorded 1917. Submarine sandwich (1955) so called from the shape of the roll. "light carriage, small boat," 1790, perhaps, on notion of bouncing, from M.E. ghyg "spinning top" (in whyrlegyg, 1440), also "giddy girl" (giglet), from O.N. geiga "turn sideways," or Dan. gig "spinning top." c.1300, from O.N.Fr. lancher (O.Fr. lancier) "to fling, hurl, throw, cast," from L.L. lanceare "wield a lance," from L. lancea "light spear" (see lance). Sense of "set (a boat) afloat" first recorded c.1400, from notion of throwing it out on the water; generalized by 1600 to "any sort of beginning." 1527, from M.Fr. caravelle, from Port. caravela dim. of caravo "small vessel," from L.L. carabus "small wicker boat covered with leather," from Gk. karabos, lit. "beetle, lobster." O.E. cræft "power, strength, might," from P.Gmc. *krab-/*kraf-. Sense shifted to "skill, art" (via a notion of "mental power"), which led to the n. meaning of "trade." Use for "small boat" is first recorded 1671, probably from some nautical sense of "vessels of small craft," referring either to the trade they did or the seamanship they required. 1552, from M.Fr. nautique, from L. nauticus "pertaining to ships or sailors," from Gk. nautikos, from nautes "sailor," from naus "ship," from PIE *nau- "boat" (see naval). light Chinese boat, 1620, from Chinese san pan, lit. "three boards," from san "three" + pan "plank." "kind of light boat," 1578, from Fr. chaloupe, from Du. sloep "sloop" (see sloop). Cf. Sp. chalupa, It. scialuppa. c.1437, from O.Fr. creue "an increase, recruit, military reinforcement," from fem. pp. of creistre "grow," from L. crescare "arise, grow." Meaning "people acting or working together" is first attested 1570. "Gang of men on a warship" is from 1692. Crew-cut first attested 1938, so called because the style was originally adopted by boat crews at Harvard and Yale. c.1303, "container," from O.Fr. vessel (Fr. vaisseau) from L. vascellum "small vase or urn," also "a ship," dim. of vasculum, itself a dim. of vas "vessel." Sense of "ship, boat" is found in Eng. c.1300. "The association between hollow utensils and boats appears in all languages" [Weekley]. Meaning "canal or duct of the body" (esp. for carrying blood) is attested from 1398. O.E. ferian "to carry, transport," from P.Gmc. *farjanan, from PIE *por- "going, passage." Related to fare (v.). The n. is c.1425, perhaps earlier and from O.N. ferju- "passage across water," ult. from the same Gmc. root. The modern n. use (1590) is a shortening of ferry boat (c.1440). O.E. flotian "to float" (class II strong verb; past tense fleat, pp. floten), from P.Gmc. *flutojanan (cf. O.N. flota, M.Du. vloten). The noun meaning "platform on wheels used for displays in parades, etc." is from 1888, probably from earlier sense of "flat-bottomed boat" (1557). Floater "dead body found in water" is 1890, U.S. slang. 1353, "stock of a crossbow," from O.Fr. telier "stock of a crossbow" (c.1200), originally "weaver's beam," from M.L. telarium, from L. tela "web, loom," from PIE *teks-la-, from base *teks- "to weave" (see texture). Meaning "bar to turn the rudder of a boat" first recorded 1625. c.1225, from O.Fr. destruire, from V.L. *destrugerie (infl. by destructos), from L. destruere "tear down, demolish," lit. "un-build," from de- "un-, down" + struere "to pile, build" (see structure). A naval destroyer was originally a "torpedo boat destroyer," though the name comes specifically from the proper name given to one such ship in the U.S. Navy in 1882. 1636, from Fr., "small, fast frigate," probably from M.Du. korver "pursuit ship," from M.L.G. korf meaning both a kind of boat and a basket, from L. corbita (navis) "slow-sailing ship of burden," from corbis "basket." A basket was hoisted as a signal by Egyptian grain-ships. The U.S. sports car was so named Sept. 1952, after the warship, on a suggestion by Myron Scott, employee of Campbell-Ewald, Chevrolet's advertising agency. 1530, from M.E. pak "bundle" (see pack (n.)) + dim. suffix -et; perhaps modified on Anglo-Fr. pacquet (M.Fr. pacquet), which is ult. a dim. of M.Du. pak. A packet boat (1641) was originally one that carried mails. O.E. roðor "paddle, oar," from P.Gmc. *rothru- (cf. O.Fris. roder, M.L.G. roder, M.Du. roeder, Du. roer, O.H.G. ruodar, Ger. Ruder "oar"), from *ro- "steer" (see row (2)) + suffix -þra, used to form neutral names of tools. Meaning "broad, flat piece of wood attached to the stern of a boat and used for steering" is from c.1303. Spelling with -d- for -th- first recorded 1440. c.1330, "fleet of ships, especially for purposes of war," from O.Fr. navie "fleet, ship," from L. navigia, pl. of navigium "vessel, boat," from navis "ship" (see naval). Meaning "a nation's collective, organized sea power" is from 1540. The O.E. words were sciphere (usually of Viking invaders) and scipfierd (usually of the home defenses). Navy blue was the color of the British naval uniform. 1676, from Fr. pontoon, from M.Fr. ponton, from L. pontonem (nom. ponto) "flat-bottomed boat," from pons "bridge." Pontoon bridge is first recorded 1778. O.E. scytel "a dart, arrow," from W.Gmc. *skutilaz (cf. O.N. skutill "harpoon"), from P.Gmc. *skut- "project" (see shoot). The weaving instrument so called (1338) from being "shot" across the threads. In some other languages, the machine takes its name from its resemblance to a boat (cf. L. navicula, Fr. navette, Ger. weberschiff). Sense of "train that runs back and forth" is first recorded 1895, from image of the weaver's instrument's back-and-forth movement over the warp; extended to aircraft 1942, to spacecraft 1969. Hence also shuttlecock (1522). "narrow strip," 1440, probably from M.L.G. or M.Du. slippe "cut, slit," possibly related to O.E. toslifan "to split, cleave." Sense of "sprig for planting or grafting" first recorded in 1495; that of "young slender person" (a slip of a girl) in 1582; that of "narrow piece of paper" (e.g. pink slip) in 1687. Meaning "boat ramp" is from 1769. The meaning "potter's clay" is a different word, from O.E. slyppe "slime," related to slupan "to slip." "a step," c.1280, from O.Fr. pas, from L. passus "a step," lit. pp. of pandere "to stretch (the leg), spread out," from PIE *pat-no-, from base *pete- "to spread" (cf. Gk. petalon "a leaf," O.E. fæðm "embrace, bosom, fathom"). The verb is first attested 1513, from the noun. Also, "a measure of five feet" [Johnson]. Pace-maker was originally (1884) a rider or boat that sets the pace for others in training; sense of "man-made device for stimulating and regulating heartbeat" is from 1951. Pace-setter in fashion is from 1895. O.E. hrof "roof, ceiling, top," from P.Gmc. *khrofaz (cf. O.Fris. rhoof "roof," M.Du. roof "cover, roof," Du. roef "deckhouse, cabin, coffin-lid," M.H.G. rof "penthouse," O.N. hrof "boat shed"). No apparent connections outside Gmc. "English alone has retained the word in a general sense, for which the other languages use forms corresponding to OE. þæc thatch" [OED]. The verb is from c.1475. Roof of the mouth is from late O.E. Raise the roof "create an uproar" is attested from 1860, originally in Southern Amer.Eng. Roofer "one who makes or repairs roofs" is from 1855. "blunder," 1909, from Fr. gaffe "clumsy remark," originally "boat hook," from O.Fr. gaffe, from O.Prov. gaf, probably from W.Goth. *gafa "hook," from P.Gmc. *gafa. Sense connection is obscure. The gaff was also used to land big fish. Or it may derive from Brit. slang gaff "to cheat, trick" (1893); or gaff "criticism" (1896), from Scot. dial. sense of "loud, rude talk," which ultimately may be from O.E. gaf-spræc "blasphemous or ribald speech." 1571, the vogue, "leading place in popularity, greatest success or acceptance," from M.Fr. vogue "fashion, success, drift, swaying motion (of a boat)" lit. "a rowing," from O.Fr. voguer "to row, sway, set sail," probably from O.Low Ger. *wogon, variant of wagon "float, fluctuate," lit. "to balance oneself" (see weigh). Apparently the notion is of being "borne along on the waves of fashion." It. vogare also probably is borrowed from Gmc. Phrase in vogue "having a prominent place in popular fashion" first recorded 1643. The fashion magazine began publication in 1892. "to sway," late O.E. roccian, related to O.N. rykkja "to pull, tear, move," Swed. rycka "to pull, pluck," M.Du. rucken, O.H.G. rucchan, Ger. rücken "to move jerkily." For musical senses, see rock (v.2). Rocking horse is first recorded 1724; rocking chair is from 1766. To rock the boat is attested from 1931. Rock-a-bye first recorded 1805 in nursery rhyme. c.1275, possibly Scand., from N.Gmc. *kut-, or from O.Fr. couteau "knife." Replaced O.E. ceorfan "carve," sniþan, and scieran "shear." Meaning "to be absent without excuse" is British university slang from 1794. The noun meaning "gash, incision" is attested from 1530; meaning "piece cut off" is from 1591; sense of "a wounding sarcasm" is from 1568. To cut a pack of cards is from 1598. Cutthroat (n.) is first recorded 1535. Cutter "boat belonging to a ship of war" is attested from 1745, possibly so called from the way it "cuts" through the water. Cutting edge (adj.) in fig. sense first recorded 1985. 1447, from L. motor, lit. "mover," from movere "to move" (see move). From 15c. as "controller, prime mover" (in reference to God); sense of "agent or force that produces mechanical motion" is first recorded 1664; that of "machine that supplies motive power" is from 1856. With explosive use 20c. as a comb. form of motor-car. First record of motor-cycle attested 1896; motor-boat is from 1902. Motor-car is from 1895; motorist is from 1896. For motorcade (1913) see cavalcade. First record of slang motor-mouth "fast-talking person" is from 1971. O.E. eahta, æhta, from P.Gmc. *akhto(u) (cf. O.N. atta, Ger. acht, Goth. ahtau), from PIE *okto (cf. Gk. okto, L. octo, O.Ir. ocht-n, Bret. eiz, Skt. astau, Avestan ashta). Klein calls it "an old dual form, orig. meaning 'twice four.' " Meaning "eight-man crew of a rowing boat" is from 1847. The Spanish piece of eight (1699) was so called because it was worth eight reals. To be behind the eight ball "in trouble" (1932) is a metaphor from shooting pool. Eighteen is O.E. eahtatene; eighty is O.E. hundeahtatig, from hund- "ten." Eighty-six, slang for "eliminate" (1936), originated as lunch counter slang, a cook's word for "none" when asked for something not available, probably rhyming slang for nix. "body of water," c.1205, from O.Fr. lack, from L. lacus "pond, lake," also "basin, tank," related to lacuna "hole, pit," from PIE *lak- (cf. Gk. lakkos "pit, tank, pond," O.C.S. loky "pool, puddle, cistern," O.Ir. loch "lake, pond"). The common notion is "basin." There was a Gmc. form of the word, which yielded cognate O.N. lögr "sea flood, water," O.E. lacu "stream," lagu "sea flood, water," leccan "to moisten" (see leak). The N.Amer. Great Lakes so called from 1665. Laker "boat made for sailing on the Great Lakes" is from 1887. 1340, "very brief portion of time, instant," in moment of time, from O.Fr. moment, from L. momentum "movement, moving power," also "instant, importance," contraction of *movimentum, from movere "to move" (see move). Some (but not O.E.D.) explain the sense evolution of the L. word by notion of a particle so small it would just "move" the pointer of a scale, which led to the transf. sense of "minute time division." Sense of "importance, 'weight' " is attested in Eng. from 1522. Momentous formed 1656 in Eng., to carry the sense of "important" while momentary (1526) kept the meaning "of an instant of time." Phrase never a dull moment first recorded 1889 in Jerome K. Jerome's "Three Men in a Boat." Phrase moment of truth first recorded 1932 in Hemingway's "Death in the Afternoon," from Sp. el momento de la verdad, the final sword-thrust in a bull-fight. O.E. stocc "stump, post, stake, tree trunk, log," also "pillory" (usually plural, stocks), from P.Gmc. *stukkaz "tree trunk" (cf. O.N. stokkr "block of wood, trunk of a tree," O.S., O.Fris. stok, M.Du. stoc "tree trunk, stump," Du. stok "stick, cane," O.H.G. stoc "tree trunk, stick," Ger. Stock "stick, cane;" also Du. stuk, Ger. Stück "piece"), from PIE *(s)teu- (see steep (adj.)). Meaning "ancestry, family" (1382) is a fig. use of the "tree trunk" sense (cf. family tree). This is also the root of the meaning "heavy part of a tool," and "part of a rifle held against the shoulder" (1541). Stock, lock, and barrel "the whole of a thing" is recorded from 1817. Meaning "framework on which a boat was constructed" (1422) led to fig. phrase on stocks "planned and commenced" (1669). Stock-still (c.1470) is lit. "as still as a tree trunk." O.E. missan "fail to hit, fail in what was aimed at," infl. by O.N. missa "to miss, to lack;" both from P.Gmc. *missijanan (cf. O.Fris. missa, M.Du. missen, Ger. missen "to miss, fail"), from base *misso-, which perhaps is the root of (mis- (1)). Meaning "to fail to get what one wanted" is from c.1250. Sense of "to escape, avoid" is from 1526; that of "to perceive with regret the absence or loss of (something or someone)" is from 1470. Sense of "to not be on time for" is from 1823; to miss the boat in the fig. sense of "be too late for" is from 1929, originally nautical slang. The noun meaning "a failure to hit or attain" is recorded from 1555 (O.E. noun *miss meant "absence, loss"). To give something a miss "to abstain from, avoid" is from 1919. Phrase a miss is as good as a mile was originally, an inch, in a miss, is as good as an ell (see ell). To miss out (on) "fail to get" is from 1929. Missing link first attested 1851 in Lyell. Missing person is from 1876. Source: |
|
