brandish

Pronunciation

• IPA: /ˈbɹændɪʃ/^[1]

Etymology

It is inherited from Middle English braundishen,^[2][3] from Old French brandir (“to flourish a sword”), from its stem brandiss-,^[4][2][5][3] from brand or brant “sword”,^[4][2][5][3] which is of Germanic origin,^[4][5][3][6] probably Frankish.^[2][5] It is related to brand.^[2][3][6]

Earliest recorded meaning

To wave a weapon about as a threat or display (before 1340).^[7][2][5]

Semantic evolution

The weapon sense has remained central.^[7][4][3] Early writers also used the verb of moving the limbs vigorously, of a snake darting its tongue,^[7] and of the sun darting out rays (1598, now obsolete).^[7] The sense of flaunting something ostentatiously, not only a weapon, is now common.^[4][3][1]

Timeline

• before 1340 – to flourish a weapon.^[7][2]
• about 1340 – to make a display, to swagger.^[7]
• 1552 – to glitter or flash, now obsolete.^[7]
• 1599 – noun, a flourish of a weapon.^[7][3]

Modern meaning

Verb

1. To wave a weapon menacingly.
2. To display something ostentatiously or aggressively; to flaunt.

Noun

1. A threatening or defiant wave or flourish.

Word family

• brandisher

Usage notes

Random House gives swing, flaunt, wield and display as synonyms.^[6]

References

1. ^ a b Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f g Barnhart, Robert K., ed. (1995), The Barnhart Concise Dictionary of Etymology, New York: HarperCollins
3. ^ a b c d e f g h Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary (2003), 11th ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
4. ^ a b c d e The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (1992), 3rd ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin
5. ^ a b c d e Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
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