sofort

Forms

sofort^[1]

Etymology

It is from German so + fort, run together into one word in northern Germany in the 16th century.^[2][3][4] In Middle Low German vōrt (“forward”) also meant “soon, at once”, and the phrase strengthened with so or also became the adverb.^[3][4][5] Kluge explains the temporal sense from the situation, “onward from here”, as with the Middle Low German adverb alone.^[2] Wiktionary describes it as taken over from Middle Low German.^[1]

The Grimms' dictionary separates the adverb, stressed on the second syllable, from the phrase written separately and stressed on both parts, which means “further in the same way”, as when someone is told to carry on like that.^[6]

Earliest recorded meaning

Paul's dictionary gives 1595 as the first record, from Rollenhagen's Froschmeuseler, where it is used of place, “straight away, directly”: gieng aus dem saal ins haus sofort (“went from the hall straight into the house”).^[7][6] The plain fort could still mean “immediately” in 1664, in Rachel's satires.^[6]

Semantic evolution

The adverb soon became common in commands and requests, as in Voss's Iliad: schirr uns sofort das gespann starkhufiger rosse (“harness at once the team of strong-hoofed horses for us”).^[7][6] In speech it also names a short interval, “in a moment”, as when someone says they are coming sofort.^[7][5]

The adjective sofortig “immediate” followed in the 19th century, often in the official phrase mit sofortiger Wirkung (“with immediate effect”); in the 20th century Sofort- became the first element of compounds such as Soforthilfe and Sofortmaßnahme.^[7][4] Commercial language says per sofort for “without delay”.^[5]

Timeline

• 16th century – Sofort arises in northern Germany from Middle Low German (al)so vōrt.^[4][3]
• 1595 – First record, in Rollenhagen's Froschmeuseler.^[7]
• 1664 – Rachel still uses the plain fort for “immediately”.^[6]
• 1851 – Bismarck uses the adjective sofortig.^[7]
• 20th century – Compounds such as Soforthilfe and Sofortmaßnahme appear.^[7]

Meanings

Adverb

1. immediately after something has happened: Sie hat den Fehler sofort bemerkt.^[5][1]
2. Without delay, at once: Bring das sofort zurück!;^[5] ab sofort, from now on;^[5] (commerce) per sofort, without delay.^[5]
3. Within a very short time, in a moment: Einen Augenblick, ich bin sofort bei Ihnen.^[5][7]

Word family

• sofortig
• Soforthilfe
• Sofortmaßnahme

Related words

• sogleich

References

1. ^ a b c d Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b Kluge, Friedrich; Seebold, Elmar (2011), Etymologisches Wörterbuch der deutschen Sprache, 25th ed., Berlin / Boston: De Gruyter, p. 856
3. ^ a b c Pfeifer, Wolfgang, et al. (1993), Etymologisches Wörterbuch des Deutschen, 2nd ed., Berlin: Akademie-Verlag; digital revised version in the DWDS, dwds.de
4. ^ a b c d Duden. Das Herkunftswörterbuch: Etymologie der deutschen Sprache (2020), 6th ed., Duden vol. 7, Berlin: Dudenverlag, p. 789
5. ^ a b c d e f g h Duden. Das große Wörterbuch der deutschen Sprache in zehn Bänden (1999), 3rd ed., Mannheim: Dudenverlag
6. ^ a b c d e Grimm, Jacob; Grimm, Wilhelm (1854–1961), Deutsches Wörterbuch, 16 vols. in 32, Leipzig: Hirzel; digital: Wörterbuchnetz, Trier Center for Digital Humanities, p. 16, 1404
7. ^ a b c d e f g h Paul, Hermann (2002), Deutsches Wörterbuch: Bedeutungsgeschichte und Aufbau unseres Wortschatzes, 10th ed., ed. Helmut Henne, Heidrun Kämper and Georg Objartel, Tübingen: Niemeyer