ellipsis

Pronunciation

• IPA: /ɪˈlɪp.sɪs/^[1]

Etymology

It is borrowed from Latin ellipsis,^{[2][3][4][5][6]} from Ancient Greek ἔλλειψις (élleipsis, “a falling short, omission”),^{[2][3][4][5][6]} from elleípein “to fall short, leave out”,^[2][3][4][5] from Ancient Greek ἐν (en, “in”) + λείπω (leípō, “to leave”).^[2][3][4][5] It is a doublet of ellipse.^[7][3]

Earliest recorded meaning

In geometry, an ellipse (1570, or the 1560s in Etymonline; 1540 in Merriam-Webster).^[3][4][7][5]

Semantic evolution

The grammatical sense, the omission of words needed to complete a construction but understood from context, is recorded from 1612.^[3][7][4] In printing the word was used from 1824 for a dash marking omitted letters,^[7] and by 1867 for a mark or series of dots showing an omission.^[4]

Timeline

• 1570 – an ellipse.^[3][7]
• 1612 – the omission of words in grammar.^[3][7]
• 1824 – a dash marking omitted letters.^[7]
• 1867 – dots marking an omission.^[4]

Modern meaning

Noun

1. The omission of a word or words needed to complete a grammatical construction but understood from the context.
2. An example of such an omission.
3. A mark or series of dots (…) showing an omission or a pause in writing.
4. A sudden jump from one topic to another.
5. (rare) An ellipse.

Related words

• elliptical
• elliptically
• ellipse
• eclipse

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 i Barnhart, Robert K., ed. (1995), The Barnhart Concise Dictionary of Etymology, New York: HarperCollins
4. ^ a b c d e f g h Harper, Douglas, Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
5. ^ a b c d e 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 f g Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press