almost

Pronunciation

• IPA: UK /ˈɔːl.məʊst/, US /ˈɔːl.moʊst/, /ˈɑːl.moʊst/^[1]

Etymology

It is inherited from Middle English almest, inherited from Old English ealmǣst (“nearly all, for the most part”),^[2][3][4] a compound, from Old English eall (“all”) + mǣst (“most”),^[3][4][5] literally “mostly all”.^[2][6] The form almest turned into almost between 1123 and 1250, but the spelling almost did not prevail until the 15th century.^[3][2]

Earliest recorded meaning

Nearly all, for the most part: Old English ealmǣst, before 1000.^[3][2]

Semantic evolution

The original sense died out in the mid-17th century^[7] and is now expressed by almost all.^[2] The sense “very nearly, all but” is from about 1200.^[2][8] With a negative, almost no meaning “scarcely any” is from 1523,^[8] and almost was used before a noun from 1552.^[8]

Timeline

• before 1000 – Old English ealmǣst, for the most part.^[3]
• c. 1200 – very nearly.^[2][8]
• 1523 – almost no, scarcely any.^[8]
• 15th century – the spelling almost prevails.^[3][2]
• mid-17th century – the sense “mostly” dies out.^[7]

Modern meaning

Adverb

1. Slightly short of; not quite; nearly.

Word family

• almost everywhere

Related words

• all
• most
• also
• alone
• nearly

Usage notes

RHWU compares almost, “very little short of”, with nearly, which suggests a slightly greater distance, and the literary well-nigh, “by a barely noticeable amount”; it also calls most in this sense colloquial.^[9]

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 d e f g h Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
3. ^ a b c d e f Barnhart, Robert K. (1988), The Barnhart Dictionary of Etymology
4. ^ a b The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (2000), 4th ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin
5. ^ Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary (2003), 11th ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
6. ^ Klein, Ernest. A Comprehensive Etymological Dictionary of the English Language. 2 vols. Amsterdam: Elsevier, 1966–1967.
7. ^ a b Shorter Oxford English Dictionary on Historical Principles (2002), 5th ed., ed. William R. Trumble and Angus Stevenson, Oxford: Oxford University Press
8. ^ a b c d e Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press
9. ^ Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary (1999), 2nd ed., New York: Random House