engagement

Pronunciation

• IPA: /ɪnˈɡeɪdʒ.mənt/^[1]

Etymology

It is formed from engage and the suffix -ment,^[2][3] after French engagement, from engager (“to pledge”).^[4][5] Engage is from French en (“in”) and gage (“pledge”) (see gage).^[4]

Earliest recorded meaning

A formal promise, agreement or undertaking: 1624 in Barnhart and the OED, the 1620s in Etymonline.^[2][6][3] MWU gives 1601 as its first known use.^[7]

Semantic evolution

In the 17th century it also meant a mortgage or encumbrance (1630) and a moral or legal obligation, a tie of duty (1627), both obsolete.^[6] A battle between armies or fleets is from the 1660s.^[3] The state of being promised in marriage is from 1742 in Fielding, in the plural,^[2][3][6] and in the singular first in Dickens's letters in 1859;^[2] the engagement ring is attested by 1840.^[3] An appointment with another person is from 1806,^[3][6] a salaried post from 1884,^[6] and in the plural, commercial promises to pay, from 1848.^[6] Mechanical engagement, the meshing of parts such as gears, and engagement with an issue or a cause are in the AHD and Collins.^[8][9]

Timeline

• 1624 – a formal promise.^[2][6]
• 1660s – a battle.^[3]
• 1742 – a promise of marriage, in Fielding.^[2][3]
• 1806 – an appointment.^[3][6]
• 1840 – engagement ring.^[3]
• 1884 – a salaried post.^[6]

Modern meaning

Noun

1. An agreement to marry; betrothal, or the period during which a couple are engaged.
2. An arrangement to meet or be present somewhere at a certain time; an appointment.
3. A battle or fight between armed forces.
4. A period of paid work, as of a performer.
5. The meshing of mechanical parts, as of gears.
6. Involvement or commitment, as with an issue.

Word family

• nonengagement
• disengagement
• reengagement
• engagement ring
• rule of engagement

Related words

• engage
• gage
• wage

Usage notes

The AHD compares engagement with appointment, assignation, date, rendezvous and tryst, which all denote a commitment to be at a certain time and place.^[8]

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 Barnhart, Robert K. (1988), The Barnhart Dictionary of Etymology
3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
4. ^ a b Pearsall, Judy, ed. (1998), The New Oxford Dictionary of English, Oxford: Clarendon Press
5. ^ Shorter Oxford English Dictionary on Historical Principles (2002), 5th ed., ed. William R. Trumble and Angus Stevenson, Oxford: Oxford University Press
6. ^ a b c d e f g h i Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press
7. ^ Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
8. ^ a b The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (1992), 3rd ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin
9. ^ Collins English Dictionary (2023), Glasgow: HarperCollins