clarify

Pronunciation

• IPA: /ˈklæɹ.ɪ.faɪ/, /ˈklæɹ.ə.faɪ/; /ˈklɛɹ.ɪ.faɪ/, /ˈklɛɹ.ə.faɪ/ (US)^[1]

Etymology

It is inherited from Middle English clarifien, borrowed from Old French clarifier,^[2][3][4] from Late Latin clārificō (“to make clear; to glorify”),^[2][3] from clārificus (“brilliant”), from clārus (“clear”) (see clear) and the root of faciō (“to make”).^[2][3]

Earliest recorded meaning

To make illustrious or glorious, make known: before 1325 in Barnhart, the early 14th century in Etymonline, a sense now obsolete.^[2][3]

Semantic evolution

To make clear and pure, especially of liquids such as liquors, is from the early 15th century (about 1430).^[3][5] To light up or brighten is from 1398.^[5] To clear the mind of error is from 1642,^[5] and the figurative sense, to free a subject from obscurity, make intelligible, from 1823.^[3][5] The New Oxford notes an early sense, to set forth clearly.^[6] Clarification is from 1612.^[2]

Timeline

• before 1325 – to glorify.^[2]
• 1398 – to illumine.^[5]
• c. 1430 – to purify a liquid.^[5]
• 1612 – clarification.^[2]
• 1823 – to make intelligible.^[3][5]

Modern meaning

Verb

1. To make clear or easier to understand; to elucidate.
2. To remove confusion or uncertainty from.
3. To make a liquid or butter clear by removing impurities, especially by heating.

Word family

• clarification
• clarifier

Related words

• clear
• clarity
• claret

Usage notes

In Suffolk dialect to clarify meant to disinfect or purify, as after measles.^[7]

References

1. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f g Barnhart, Robert K. (1988), The Barnhart Dictionary of Etymology
3. ^ a b c d e f g Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
4. ^ Hoad, T. F., ed. (1986), The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology, Oxford: Clarendon Press
5. ^ a b c d e f g Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press
6. ^ Pearsall, Judy, ed. (1998), The New Oxford Dictionary of English, Oxford: Clarendon Press
7. ^ Wright, Joseph, ed. (1898–1905), The English Dialect Dictionary, 6 vols., Oxford: Henry Frowde; via EDD Online 4.0, University of Innsbruck (CC BY 4.0)