Etymologically
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addition

This is the current revision of this entry, as edited by bogdan on 15 October 2026 at 19:39. This address is a permanent link to this version.
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Pronunciation

  • IPA: /əˈdɪʃ.ən/[1]

Etymology

It is inherited from Middle English addicioun,[2] borrowed from Old French adition (“increase, augmentation”),[3][4][5] from Latin additiō (“an adding to”) (accusative additiōnem),[3][4] from additus, the past participle of addere (“to add to, join, attach”),[5][3] the source of add.[4][5]

Earliest recorded meaning

Before 1388;[4] Etymonline dates the sense “the adding of numbers” to the late 14th century,[3] and the OED's earliest quotation, for “that which is added”, is from 1366.[6]

Semantic evolution

“That which is added” is from about 1400 according to Etymonline,[3] and the action of adding or joining in general from about 1440.[6] The rule of arithmetic is recorded from 1542.[6] A title or description added to a person's name, to show rank or occupation, is from 1494,[6] and in heraldry a mark of honour added to a coat of arms from 1606.[6] In addition to, “as well as”, is from the 1680s.[3] In the United States an addition was a piece of land added to a holding, from 1636.[6] Additive is from 1699, and the noun, a substance added, from 1945.[4]

Timeline

  • 1366 – that which is added.[6]
  • before 1388 – first record in Barnhart.[4]
  • late 14th century – the adding of numbers.[3]
  • 1494 – a title added to a name.[6]
  • 1542 – addition as a rule of arithmetic.[6]
  • 1680s – in addition to.[3]
  • 1945 – additive, noun.[4]

Modern meaning

Noun

  1. The act or process of adding.
  2. (mathematics) The process of combining numbers to find their sum.
  3. Something added, such as a room or wing added to a building.
  4. (in addition) As well; besides.

Word family

  • additional
  • additionally
  • cycloaddition
  • readdition
  • addition polymerization
  • addition reaction

References

  1. ^ Jones, Daniel (2011), Cambridge English Pronouncing Dictionary, 18th ed., ed. Peter Roach, Jane Setter and John Esling, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press
  2. ^ Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  4. ^ a b c d e f g Barnhart, Robert K. (1988), The Barnhart Dictionary of Etymology
  5. ^ a b c The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (2000), 4th ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin
  6. ^ a b c d e f g h i Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press