admission
Pronunciation
- IPA: /ædˈmɪʃ.n̩/ (UK); /ədˈmɪʃən/ (US)[1]
Etymology
It is Middle English admyssion, borrowed from Anglo-Norman admission and directly borrowed from Latin admissio (“a letting in; admittance to an interview”),[2][3][4] from admiss-, the past participle stem of admittere (“to admit, give entrance”) (see admit),[2][3] from ad (“to”) and mittere, to let go, send (see mission).[3]
Earliest recorded meaning
Acceptance, reception, approval: about 1430 in Barnhart, the early 15th century in Etymonline.[2][3]
Semantic evolution
Reception into an office, appointment, is from 1494.[5] An acknowledging, admitting something as true, is from the 1530s (1538 in the OED).[3][5] The literal sense, the act of letting someone enter a place, is from the 1620s (1622 in the OED).[3][5] As short for the admission price, it is by 1792.[3][5] In law, a concession of a fact is from 1808.[5]
Timeline
- c. 1430 – acceptance.[2]
- 1494 – appointment to office.[5]
- 1538 – acknowledgement.[5]
- 1622 – admittance to a place.[5]
- 1792 – an entry fee.[3][5]
Modern meaning
Noun
- A statement acknowledging that something is true; a confession.
- The act of allowing someone to enter a place or join an organization.
- The price charged for entry.
- Acceptance of a patient into hospital.
Word family
- admissive
- nonadmission
- preadmission
- readmission
- open admission
Related words
- admit
- admittance
- mission
- emission
- permission
References
- ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
- ^ a b c d Barnhart, Robert K. (1988), The Barnhart Dictionary of Etymology
- ^ a b c d e f g h Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
- ^ Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
- ^ 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