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Etymology and origin of the English word broadband

Confidence
Established
Formation
Compound
First attested
1919 Official Gazette of the United States Patent Office
Ultimate origins
Old English brādOld Norse band
Etymology tree
inherited borrowed derived
English broad
English broadband

Pronunciation

  • UK: /ˈbɹɔːdbænd/[1]
  • US: /ˈbɹɔdbænd/[1]

Etymology

It is formed from English broad + band, band in its sense of a range of frequencies.[2][3][4]

Earliest recorded meaning

Of or using a band of frequencies covering a wide range: 1919, in the Official Gazette of the United States Patent Office.[2] Merriam-Webster's first known use is 1929,[5] and Dictionary.com dates the word 1900–05.[4] Etymonline finds broad band in other senses from the 1620s.[3]

Semantic evolution

The word began in radio and electronics as an adjective, and as a noun for a wide band of frequencies from 1956.[2][3] In 1981 it was applied to a telecommunications network carrying telephone, television and computer data over a single high-speed connection,[2] and in 1993 to internet access faster than dial-up.[2] The noun for such high-speed internet access is recorded from 1994,[2] and Etymonline notes that it became widely available from 2006.[3] It is contrasted with narrowband and baseband.[5][6]

Timeline

  • 1620s – broad band in various senses.[3]
  • 1919 – adjective, using a wide range of frequencies.[2]
  • 1956 – noun, a wide band of frequencies.[2][3]
  • 1981 – of a network carrying several services over one fast connection.[2]
  • 1993 – of high-speed internet access.[2]
  • 1994 – noun, high-speed internet access.[2]

Meanings

Noun

  1. A fast connection to the Internet that carries data over many channels at once: The village finally got broadband last spring.[6][2]
  2. A wide band of frequencies, or transmission over one.[2][6]

Adjective

  1. Operating at or using a wide band of frequencies.[5][2]
  2. Of or relating to a high-speed communications network or internet connection.[5][2]

References

  1. ^ a b Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o Oxford English Dictionary Online (accessed March 2026), Oxford: Oxford University Press
  3. ^ a b c d e f Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  4. ^ a b Dictionary.com Unabridged (2016), based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, New York: Random House
  5. ^ a b c d Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  6. ^ a b c Collins English Dictionary (2023), Glasgow: HarperCollins
Cite this entry

“Broadband.” Etymologically, 25 Oct. 2026, etymologically.com/en/broadband. Accessed 26 Oct. 2026.

Last edited on . ·