Etymologically
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clarification

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Pronunciation

  • /ˌklæɹɪfɪˈkeɪʃən/[1]

Etymology

It is borrowed from French clarification,[2][3][4] from Late Latin clārificātiō (“glorification”),[4][5][3] a noun of action from clārificō (“to make clear; to glorify”),[3][2] which is formed from Latin clārus (“clear, distinct”) and the combining form of faciō (“to make, do”).[3][2] Merriam-Webster allows a borrowing from either French or Late Latin,[5] and the Shorter Oxford takes the senses of making clear as partly formed from the verb clarify, and the obsolete sense "glorification" from Ecclesiastical Latin.[6]

Earliest recorded meaning

The action or process of clearing something, especially a liquid, of impurities: 1617, in J. Woodall's Surgions Mate.[2][7] Etymonline likewise dates the word to the 1610s;[3] the Shorter Oxford dates the sense of making something plain to the understanding to the early 16th century.[6]

Semantic evolution

Johnson (1755) defined the word only as the act of making something clear of impurities, quoting Bacon on how to speed up the clarification of muddy liquors such as wort.[8] A religious sense, "glorifying, transfiguration", after the Late Latin meaning, was used from 1633 to 1683 and is obsolete.[2][7][6] The use for making ideas, thought or opinion clear is quoted from Whewell, before 1866,[2][7] and became the main sense of the word.[5][6] Etymonline notes a newer sense, a statement that revises or expands an earlier one without going so far as to correct it, attested by 1969 and first used in newspapers.[3] The adjective clarificatory followed in the mid 20th century.[6]

Timeline

  • early 16th century – making something plain to the understanding (Shorter Oxford).[6]
  • 1617 – the clearing of a liquid of impurities.[2][7]
  • 1633 – glorification, transfiguration (obsolete by 1683).[2][7]
  • 1755 – Johnson defines it as freeing something from impurities.[8]
  • before 1866 – of ideas, thought or opinion.[2][7]
  • 1969 – a statement that revises or expands an earlier one.[3]

Meanings

Noun

  1. The act or process of making something clearer or easier to understand, removing ambiguity or confusion: The committee asked for clarification of the new rules.[5][2][6]
  2. A statement that explains, revises or expands an earlier one without correcting it.[3]
  3. The clearing of a liquid or other substance of impurities: the clarification of wine.[2][6][8]
  4. (obsolete, 1633–1683) Glorification or transfiguration.[2][6]

References

  1. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l Oxford English Dictionary Online (accessed March 2026), Oxford: Oxford University Press
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  4. ^ a b Klein, Ernest. A Comprehensive Etymological Dictionary of the English Language. 2 vols. Amsterdam: Elsevier, 1966–1967.
  5. ^ a b c d Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  6. ^ a b c d e f g h i Shorter Oxford English Dictionary on Historical Principles (2002), 5th ed., ed. William R. Trumble and Angus Stevenson, Oxford: Oxford University Press
  7. ^ a b c d e f Kay, Christian; Roberts, Jane; Samuels, Michael; Wotherspoon, Irené, eds. (2009), Historical Thesaurus of the Oxford English Dictionary, Oxford: Oxford University Press; online edition (2024)
  8. ^ a b c Johnson, Samuel (1755), A Dictionary of the English Language, London; 4th ed. 1773; Johnson's Dictionary Online, ed. Beth Rapp Young et al.