correspondence
Pronunciation
- IPA: /ˌkɒɹ.ɪˈspɒn.dəns/, /ˌkɒɹ.əˈspɒn.dəns/ (UK); /ˌkoɹ.ɪˈspɑn.dəns/, /ˌkoɹ.əˈspɑn.dəns/ (US)[1]
Etymology
It is inherited from Middle English correspondence, borrowed from Middle French correspondance or directly Medieval Latin correspondentia,[2][3][4] from correspondēns, the present participle of correspondeō (“to correspond, harmonize”),[2] from com- (“together”) and respondeō (“to answer”) (see respond).[2]
Earliest recorded meaning
Agreement, congruence, harmony: 1413 in the OED, the early 15th century in Etymonline.[5][2]
Semantic evolution
Similarity or analogy is from 1605,[5] and relations between persons or communities from 1599.[5] Communication by letters is first attested in the 1640s,[2] and the letters themselves from 1771.[2] Swedenborg's doctrine of correspondences, that every natural thing corresponds to a spiritual one, is named from 1860.[5] In mathematics a correspondence is a relation between two sets, from 1866.[5]
Timeline
- 1413 – agreement.[5]
- 1599 – relations between persons.[5]
- 1640s – communication by letter.[2]
- 1771 – the letters exchanged.[2]
- 1866 – correspondence in mathematics.[5]
Modern meaning
Noun
- Communication by exchanging letters, or the letters themselves.
- Agreement, similarity or close connection between things.
Adjective
- Relating to teaching by post: a correspondence course.
Word family
- noncorrespondence
- correspondence course
- correspondence principle
Related words
- correspond
- correspondent
- respond
References
- ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
- ^ a b c d e f g h Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
- ^ Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
- ^ Pearsall, Judy, ed. (1998), The New Oxford Dictionary of English, Oxford: Clarendon Press
- ^ a b c d e f g h Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press