Etymologically
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commodity

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Pronunciation

  • IPA: /kəˈmɒdəti/ (UK); /kəˈmɑdəti/ (US)[1]

Etymology

It is inherited from Middle English commoditee, borrowed from Middle French commodité and directly Latin commoditās (“fitness, convenience, advantage”),[2][3][4] from commodus (“fit, convenient”) (see commode and commodious),[2][3][5] from com- and modus (“measure, manner”), from Proto-Indo-European *med- (“to take appropriate measures”).[3]

Earliest recorded meaning

Benefit, profit, welfare: 1410 in Barnhart, the early 15th century in Etymonline.[2][3] A convenient or useful product is from before 1420.[2]

Semantic evolution

The commercial sense, an article produced for use or sale, is first found in 1436,[2][3] and in economics it is a primary product or raw material traded in bulk.[6][7] Convenience, expediency, advantage and opportunity were 16th-century senses, now obsolete.[8]

Timeline

  • 1410 – benefit, profit.[2]
  • before 1420 – a useful product.[2]
  • 1436 – an article of trade.[2]
  • 1488 – convenience (obsolete).[8]

Modern meaning

Noun

  1. A raw material or primary product that can be bought and sold, such as copper or coffee.
  2. An article of trade; something useful or valuable.

Word family

  • commodify
  • discommodity
  • commoditize
  • commodity exchange

Usage notes

In Ayrshire Scots a commodity meant a considerable portion, as of good sense.[9]

References

  1. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h Barnhart, Robert K. (1988), The Barnhart Dictionary of Etymology
  3. ^ a b c d e Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  4. ^ Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  5. ^ Pearsall, Judy, ed. (1998), The New Oxford Dictionary of English, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  6. ^ Collins English Dictionary (2023), Glasgow: HarperCollins
  7. ^ The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (1992), 3rd ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin
  8. ^ a b Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press
  9. ^ 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)