Etymologically
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cul-de-sac

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Pronunciation

  • IPA: /ˈkʌldəsak/ (UK); /ˈkʌldəsæk/ (US)[1]

Etymology

It is borrowed from French cul-de-sac (“bottom of the sack”),[2][3][4][5][6] from cul “bottom”, from Latin culus (“backside”),[2][3][4] de “of”[2] and sac “sack”, from Latin saccus.[2][3][4]

Earliest recorded meaning

In anatomy, a vessel, tube or sac open only at one end (1738).[7][3][4][5]

Semantic evolution

By 1800 the word meant a street, lane or passage closed at one end, a blind alley,[7][3] and it was soon used figuratively of a situation with no way forward.[3][7][6] Etymonline dates the street sense to 1819.[4]

Timeline

  • 1738 – an anatomical pouch open at one end.[7][3][4][5]
  • 1800 – a blind alley; also figurative.[7][3]
  • 1819 – Etymonline's date for the street sense.[4]

Modern meaning

Noun

  1. A street closed at one end; a dead end.
  2. A situation in which no further progress is possible; an impasse.
  3. (anatomy) A sac-like cavity or tube open at one end only.
  • sack
  • blind alley
  • impasse

References

  1. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (1992), 3rd ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h Barnhart, Robert K., ed. (1995), The Barnhart Concise Dictionary of Etymology, New York: HarperCollins
  4. ^ a b c d e f g Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  5. ^ a b c Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary (2003), 11th ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  6. ^ a b Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary (1999), 2nd ed., New York: Random House
  7. ^ a b c d e Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press