device

Pronunciation

• IPA: /dɪˈvaɪs/^[1]

Etymology

It is inherited from Middle English devis, devise,^[2][3][4] borrowed from Old French devis (“division; disposition, wish, desire; coat of arms, emblem; a bequest”) and devise “plan, design, will”,^[2][3][5] from deviser (“to arrange, plan, contrive”), literally “to dispose in portions”,^[2] from Vulgar Latin *dīvīsāre, a frequentative of dīvidere (“to divide”).^[2][3] The spelling device is from the 15th century.^[5] It is related to devise and divide.^[2][3]

Earliest recorded meaning

“Intent, desire; a plan or design; a literary composition”: about 1300 in Etymonline;^[2] the OED has a contrivance for some end about 1290, and will or desire before 1300.^[6]

Semantic evolution

The basic sense, the method by which something is divided, arose in Old French and led to the modern meanings through the notion of something invented for a purpose.^[2] The original sense, “desire, intention”, survives only in to leave someone to their own devices^[7][8] and in the Book of Common Prayer's “the devices and desires of our own hearts”.^[7] From about 1400 it meant an artistic design, and especially an emblem with a motto expressing its bearer's principles;^[2] also from about 1400 a mechanical contrivance, such as a large crossbow with a crank.^[2] A bequest in a will is from the mid-15th century.^[2] Since about 1996 it has been used especially of a hand-held electronic or computing instrument.^[2]

Timeline

• c. 1290 – a contrivance for an end.^[6]
• before 1300 – will, desire.^[6]
• c. 1400 – an emblem; a mechanical contrivance.^[2]
• mid-15th century – a bequest.^[2]
• c. 1996 – a hand-held electronic device.^[2]

Modern meaning

Noun

1. A contrivance or invention made for a particular purpose, especially a machine or gadget.
2. A technique or means; a plan or scheme, often a trick.
3. A literary or artistic contrivance used for effect, such as personification.
4. An ornamental design, especially an emblem with a motto.
5. An explosive contrivance; a bomb.
6. Devices, one's own inclination: left to their own devices.

Word family

• deviceful
• devicefully
• devicefulness

Related words

• devise
• divide
• division
• individual
• devisee

References

1. ^ Jones, Daniel (2011), Cambridge English Pronouncing Dictionary, 18th ed., ed. Peter Roach, Jane Setter and John Esling, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press
2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
3. ^ a b c d Barnhart, Robert K. (1988), The Barnhart Dictionary of Etymology
4. ^ Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
5. ^ a b Hoad, T. F., ed. (1986), The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology, Oxford: Clarendon Press
6. ^ a b c Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press
7. ^ a b Cresswell, Julia (2021), Oxford Dictionary of Word Origins, 3rd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
8. ^ Pearsall, Judy, ed. (1998), The New Oxford Dictionary of English, Oxford: Clarendon Press