debauch

Pronunciation

• IPA: /dɪˈbɔːt͡ʃ/^[1]

Etymology

It is borrowed from Middle French débaucher (“to entice from work or duty”),^{[2][3][4][5][6]} from Old French desbauchier,^[2][3][4][5] a word of uncertain origin.^[4] It is usually explained as des- and bauch “beam”,^{[2][3][4][5][6]} of Germanic origin and related to balk.^[3][4][5][6] The original sense would have been to trim wood into a beam,^[3][4] then to split or separate,^[3][6] and so to separate someone from work or duty.^[6]

Earliest recorded meaning

To lead someone away from those to whom service or allegiance is due (before 1595).^[7][3][4][5]

Semantic evolution

From luring people away from their allegiance, the verb came to mean seducing them from virtue or morality (1603),^[7][4] especially corrupting them by intemperance or sensual pleasure,^[7][5] and seducing a woman from chastity.^[7][4] The intransitive sense of indulging to excess is from the 1640s,^[4][7] and the noun, a bout of indulgence, from 1603.^[3][5][7]

Timeline

• before 1595 – to entice from allegiance.^[7][3]
• 1603 – to corrupt morally; noun, a bout of excess.^[7][3][5]
• 1642 – debauchery.^[3]
• 1644 – intransitive, to indulge to excess.^[7][4]
• 1711 – to seduce a woman.^[7]

Modern meaning

Verb

1. To corrupt someone morally, especially through sensuality or excess; to seduce.
2. To lower the quality of something; to debase.
3. (archaic) To lead someone away from allegiance or duty.
4. To indulge in debauchery.

Noun

1. A bout of debauchery.
2. An orgy.

Word family

• debauchedly
• debaucher
• debauchment
• debauchee
• debauchery

Related words

• balk

Usage notes

Random House refers to debase for a discussion of synonyms.^[6]

References

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