Etymologically
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albeit

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Pronunciation

  • IPA: /ɔːlˈbiː.ɪt/[1]

Etymology

It is a contraction of the Middle English phrase al be it (“although it be (that)”),[2][3][4][5][6] from all, used as an adverb, the subjunctive be and it.[4][5] The first meaning was “let it entirely be (that)”.[4]

Earliest recorded meaning

Before 1325, in Cursor Mundi, in Barnhart;[2] the late 14th century in Etymonline.[3] The OED's past-tense form, al were it, even though it were, is from about 1374, as in Chaucer.[7][3]

Semantic evolution

Used without a following that, even though, it is from about 1385,[7] and in a contracted clause, as in albeit in an edited form, from 1795.[7] Its relative howbeit is formed the same way.[4]

Timeline

  • before 1325 – al be it.[2]
  • c. 1374 – al were it (obsolete).[7]
  • c. 1385 – albeit, though.[7]
  • 1795 – albeit with a phrase.[7]

Modern meaning

Conjunction

  1. Even though; although: published, albeit in an edited form.

References

  1. ^ Jones, Daniel (2011), Cambridge English Pronouncing Dictionary, 18th ed., ed. Peter Roach, Jane Setter and John Esling, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press
  2. ^ a b c Barnhart, Robert K. (1988), The Barnhart Dictionary of Etymology
  3. ^ a b c Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  4. ^ a b c d Hoad, T. F., ed. (1986), The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  5. ^ a b Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  6. ^ Pearsall, Judy, ed. (1998), The New Oxford Dictionary of English, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  7. ^ a b c d e f Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press