Etymologically
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dabei

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Pronunciation

  • /daˑˈbaɪ̯/[1]

Forms

dabei (adverb)[1] Middle High German dâbî is usual from the end of the 11th century;[2] darbei spread after the middle of the 15th century and was almost as common as dabei until about 1700, and since the middle of the 18th century only dabei has been used.[2]

Etymology

It is from German da1 + bei, already Old High German dār bī and Middle High German dâbî.[2][3][1] The same compound is Old Saxon thar bi, Old Frisian therbī, Old English þǣr-bi, Dutch daarbij and Yiddish דערבײַ (derbay), with English thereby.[2][1]

Earliest recorded meaning

Old High German dārbī is recorded from the 9th century in glosses, then in Notker, meaning “with it, beside it, thereby”.[4] Paul notes that already in Old High German it was used not only of place but also for abstract relations.[3]

Semantic evolution

Until the 14th century, and again in the 16th, the two parts could be separated by other words; since the 18th century this split (da … bei) is found in colloquial northern German.[2] Phrases include ich bin dabei “I am ready to take part”, as in Goethe's ich bin dabey mit seele und leib, and es ist nichts dabei “there is no harm in it” (18th century).[3]

Timeline

  • 9th century – Old High German dārbī is first recorded.[4]
  • End of the 11th century – Middle High German dâbî becomes the usual form.[2]
  • Mid-15th century – darbei spreads beside dabei.[2]
  • 18th century – es ist nichts dabei is recorded.[3]
  • Mid-18th century – dabei becomes the only form.[2]

Meanings

Adverb

  1. Near it, with it, by it (er öffnete das Paket, ein Brief war nicht dabei).[5][1]
  2. Present at something; taking part (ich bin dabei! “count me in”).[5]
  3. At the same time, in the course of it (sie nähte und hörte Musik dabei); with zu and an infinitive, in the process of doing something.[5][1]
  4. In this matter, in doing so (ohne sich etwas dabei zu denken).[5][1]
  5. And yet, although actually (introducing a contradiction).[1][6]

Word family

  • dabeisein

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h Deutsches Wörterbuch von Jacob Grimm und Wilhelm Grimm, Neubearbeitung (1965–2018), ed. Berlin-Brandenburgische Akademie der Wissenschaften and Akademie der Wissenschaften zu Göttingen, 9 vols. (A–F), Leipzig / Stuttgart: Hirzel, p. 6, 14
  3. ^ a b c d Paul, Hermann (2002), Deutsches Wörterbuch: Bedeutungsgeschichte und Aufbau unseres Wortschatzes, 10th ed., ed. Helmut Henne, Heidrun Kämper and Georg Objartel, Tübingen: Niemeyer
  4. ^ a b Köbler, Gerhard (2014), Althochdeutsches Wörterbuch, 6th ed., online, koeblergerhard.de/wikiling
  5. ^ a b c d Duden. Das große Wörterbuch der deutschen Sprache in zehn Bänden (1999), 3rd ed., Mannheim: Dudenverlag
  6. ^ Wiktionary, das freie Wörterbuch (German Wiktionary), de.wiktionary.org