alcove

Pronunciation

• IPA: /ˈæl.kəʊv/ (UK); /ˈæl.koʊv/ (US)^[1]

Etymology

It is borrowed from French alcôve,^{[2][3][4][5][6]} from Spanish alcoba,^[2][3][4][5] from Arabic القُبَّة (al-qubba, “the vaulted chamber, the arch”).^[2][3][4][5] The al- is the Arabic definite article,^[2][4] and qubba is from a Semitic root meaning “to be bent, vaulted”.^[4]

Earliest recorded meaning

A recess in a room, set apart for a bed (1623 in the OED;^[7] 1676 in Barnhart and Merriam-Webster).^[3][5]

Semantic evolution

The first alcoves were sleeping recesses.^[7][6] The word then spread to recesses in gardens or hedges (1706),^[7] to any shady retreat or bower,^[7][2] and to arched niches in walls (1786).^[7]

Timeline

• 1623 – a recess in a room for a bed.^[7]
• 1670s – date given by Etymonline and Barnhart.^[4][3]
• 1706 – a recess or retreat in a garden.^[7]
• 1786 – an arched niche in a wall.^[7]

Modern meaning

Noun

1. A small recess opening off a room; a nook.
2. An arched opening in a wall; a niche.
3. A sheltered structure in a garden, such as a bower.

Word family

• alcoved

Usage notes

Random House gives nook and bay as synonyms.^[6]

References

1. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (1992), 3rd ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin
3. ^ a b c d e Barnhart, Robert K., ed. (1995), The Barnhart Concise Dictionary of Etymology, New York: HarperCollins
4. ^ a b c d e f Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
5. ^ a b c d Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary (2003), 11th ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
6. ^ a b c Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary (1999), 2nd ed., New York: Random House
7. ^ a b c d e f g h Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press