Etymologically
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announce

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Pronunciation

  • IPA: /əˈnaʊns/, /əˈnaʊn(t)s/[1]

Etymology

It is borrowed from Old French anoncier (“to announce, proclaim”),[2][3][4] from Latin annūntiāre (“to bring news to”), from ad- (“to”) and nūntiāre (“to report”), from nuntius (“messenger”), of unknown origin,[2][3][5] which Etymonline derives from PIE Proto-Indo-European *neu- (“to shout”).[3] It is a doublet of annunciate.[2]

Earliest recorded meaning

To make known, proclaim: 1483, in Caxton;[2][6] about 1500 in Etymonline.[3] Hoad notes that it was rare before the 18th century.[4]

Semantic evolution

To make known the approach or presence of someone, as of a guest, is from 1761,[6] and to show something without words, as when dark clouds announce rain, from 1808.[6] Announcement is from 1798,[2] and announcer, one who introduces programmes on radio or television, is a 20th-century sense.[7] Word Origins lists denounce, pronounce, renounce and enunciate as relatives.[8]

Timeline

  • 1483 – to proclaim.[2][6]
  • 1761 – to announce a guest.[6]
  • 1798 – announcement.[2]
  • 1808 – to indicate without words.[6]

Modern meaning

Verb

  1. To make known publicly; to proclaim.
  2. To declare the arrival or presence of: announce a guest.
  3. To give an indication of beforehand; to foretell.
  4. To act as an announcer for a broadcast.

Word family

  • announceable
  • reannounce
  • announcement
  • announcer
  • preannounce
  • unannounced
  • annunciation
  • denounce
  • pronounce
  • renounce
  • nuncio

References

  1. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f g Barnhart, Robert K. (1988), The Barnhart Dictionary of Etymology
  3. ^ a b c d Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  4. ^ a b Hoad, T. F., ed. (1986), The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  5. ^ Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  6. ^ a b c d e f Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press
  7. ^ The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (1992), 3rd ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin
  8. ^ Cresswell, Julia (2021), Oxford Dictionary of Word Origins, 3rd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press