cadaver
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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
- A dead body, especially a human body intended for dissection.
Word family
- cadaveric
- cadaverine
- cadaverous
Related words
- cadence
- decay
- chance
References
- ^ a b Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
- ^ a b c d The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (1992), 3rd ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin
- ^ a b c d e Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary (2003), 11th ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
- ^ a b c d Barnhart, Robert K., ed. (1995), The Barnhart Concise Dictionary of Etymology, New York: HarperCollins
- ^ a b c d e Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
- ^ a b c d e Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press
- ^ a b Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary (1999), 2nd ed., New York: Random House