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belfry

Etymology and origin of the English word belfry

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Formation
Borrowing
Borrowed from
Anglo-Norman berfrei via Middle English

Pronunciation

  • IPA: /ˈbɛlfɹi/[1]

Etymology

It is inherited from Middle English belfrey, earlier berfrey,[2][3] borrowed from Anglo-Norman berfrei and borrowed from Old Northern French belfroi,[4][5][6] of Germanic origin,[2][3] compare Middle High German bercfrit (“protecting shelter; siege tower”).[6][5][2] The Germanic compound is made of a word meaning “to protect” or perhaps “high place”, and a word meaning “peace, safety”,[4][6][3] related to Old High German bergan “to shelter” and Old English friþ “peace”.[2] The first syllable was changed from ber- to bel- by dissimilation and by association with bell.[6][4][3]

Earliest recorded meaning

A wooden siege tower, usually movable, used in medieval warfare to attack fortifications.[7][6][5] The OED's earliest evidence is from a1143;[7] Etymonline dates the English word to c. 1400.[6]

Semantic evolution

The siege tower came to mean a watchtower,[4][7] and presumably because bells hung in such towers, the word was applied to bell towers.[4][6] The American Heritage Dictionary and Barnhart date the sense “bell tower” to 1272,[4][5] the OED to c1440.[7] The resemblance to bell then reshaped its spelling.[4][6] Slang use for “the head”, as in bats in the belfry, dates from 1907.[7][2][3]

Timeline

  • a1143 – a movable siege tower.[7]
  • 1272 – a bell tower.[4][5]
  • c1440 – a bell tower attached to a church or standing apart.[7]
  • 1549 – the room in a tower where the bells hang.[7]
  • 1553 – a shed for cattle or carts.[7]
  • 1612 – a watchtower or beacon tower.[7]
  • 1907 – (slang) the head.[7]

Modern meaning

Noun

  1. A bell tower, standing alone or attached to a church or other building.
  2. The part of a tower or steeple in which bells are hung; also a frame holding a bell.
  3. (slang) The head or mind.
  4. (historical) A movable siege tower.

Word family

  • belfried
  • bell
  • affray

References

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

Related etymologies

Cite this entry

“Belfry.” Etymologically, 15 Oct. 2026, etymologically.com/en/belfry. Accessed 15 Oct. 2026.

Last edited on . ·