Etymologically
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aboard

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Pronunciation

  • IPA: /əˈbɔːd/ (UK); /əˈbɔɹd/ (US)[1]

Etymology

It is Middle English abord, formed from a- and board in the sense side of a ship,[2][3][4] partly after Old French à bord (“on board”), from à, on, and bord, side of a ship, from a Germanic source.[5][2][6] The usual Middle English expression was within borde.[5]

Earliest recorded meaning

At the side of a ship: late 14th century in Etymonline;[5] alongside a ship, 14th century in Hoad.[4]

Semantic evolution

On or onto a ship is from the mid-15th century,[5][4] the name of the vessel's sides being extended to the ship itself.[5] The call all aboard, warning passengers that a vessel is about to start, is attested by 1829 in Etymonline and 1838 in the OED.[5][7] On or into a train or aircraft is from 1856, chiefly American at first.[7] In Lincolnshire and Devon dialect, to have something aboard meant to be drunk.[8]

Timeline

  • late 14th century – at the side of a ship.[5]
  • mid-15th century – on or onto a ship.[5]
  • 1829 – all aboard![5]
  • 1856 – on a train or aircraft.[7]

Modern meaning

Adverb

  1. On board a ship, train, aircraft or other passenger vehicle.
  2. Into a group, organization or business.
  3. (nautical) Alongside a vessel.
  4. (baseball) On base.

Preposition

  1. On board of; on or in.

References

  1. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  3. ^ Pearsall, Judy, ed. (1998), The New Oxford Dictionary of English, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  4. ^ a b c Hoad, T. F., ed. (1986), The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  5. ^ a b c d e f g h i Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  6. ^ Shorter Oxford English Dictionary on Historical Principles (2002), 5th ed., ed. William R. Trumble and Angus Stevenson, Oxford: Oxford University Press
  7. ^ a b c Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press
  8. ^ Wright, Joseph, ed. (1898–1905), The English Dialect Dictionary, 6 vols., Oxford: Henry Frowde; via EDD Online 4.0, University of Innsbruck (CC BY 4.0)