cadaver

Pronunciation

• IPA: /kəˈdæv.ə(ɹ)/, /kəˈdɑːv.ə(ɹ)/ (UK); /kəˈdævɚ/ (US)^[1]

Etymology

It is borrowed from Latin cadāver (“dead body”),^[2][3][4][5] probably from a participle of cadere “to fall, perish, die”,^[5][2][3] from Proto-Indo-European *kad- (“to fall”).^[5][2] Etymonline compares Greek ptōma “corpse”, literally “a fall”.^[5]

Earliest recorded meaning

A dead body, especially of a human being; a corpse (1398).^[6][5][7] Barnhart considers this early occurrence to be Latin and dates the English borrowing to about 1500, as does Merriam-Webster.^[4][3]

Semantic evolution

The word has kept its meaning but is now chiefly technical,^[6] used especially of a body intended for dissection.^[2][3][7][1] A sense “skeleton” is recorded from 1682.^[6]

Timeline

• 1398 – a dead body, a corpse.^[6]
• a1425 – cadaverous.^[4]
• c1500 – established in English.^[4][3]
• 1682 – a skeleton.^[6]

Modern meaning

Noun

1. A dead body, especially a human body intended for dissection.

Word family

• cadaveric
• cadaverine
• cadaverous

Related words

• cadence
• decay
• chance

References

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