Etymologically
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enrichment

This is the current revision of this entry, as edited by bogdan on 31 October 2026 at 15:30. This address is a permanent link to this version.
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Pronunciation

  • /ɪnˈɹɪt͡ʃ.mənt/[1]

Etymology

It is formed from English enrich + -ment.[2][3][4][5][6] enrich, recorded from 1382, is from Old French enrichir, also enrichier,[4][7][2] formed from en- and riche (“rich”).[4][7][2]

Earliest recorded meaning

The action of enriching, or the state of being enriched: before 1626, in Francis Bacon's Advertisement touching an Holy War, which speaks of a translation made "not without great and ample additions, and enrichment thereof".[2][6]

Semantic evolution

From 1649 the word was also used concretely for a means of enriching, as of land,[2] and since 1664, in John Evelyn, for the richness given to a building by ornament, and for the ornaments themselves.[2][3] Johnson (1755) gave two senses, "augmentation of wealth" and "amplification; improvement by addition".[6] In the 20th century the word took on scientific senses, following enrich (1945, of isotopes): an increase in the proportion of a particular, usually fissile, isotope in an element, as in nuclear fuel.[2][3] In geology it is also the natural process by which sulphide ore deposits gain valuable metals from above.[8]

Timeline

  • 1382 – the verb enrich.[2]
  • before 1626 – the action of enriching, in Bacon.[2]
  • 1649 – a means of enriching.[2]
  • 1664 – decorative additions to a building.[2]
  • mid-20th century – increased proportion of a fissile isotope.[3]

Meanings

Noun

  1. The act of making something richer, or the state of being made richer, in wealth, quality, nutrients or value: the enrichment of the soil with compost.[8][2][3]
  2. Something that enriches, especially an ornament on a building.[8][2][3]
  3. (physics) An increase in the proportion of a particular isotope, usually a fissile one, in an element, as in uranium for nuclear fuel.[2][3]
  4. (geology) The natural process by which sulphide ore deposits gain valuable metals carried down in solution.[8]

Word family

  • self-enrichment

References

  1. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n Oxford English Dictionary Online (accessed March 2026), Oxford: Oxford University Press
  3. ^ a b c d e f g Shorter Oxford English Dictionary on Historical Principles (2002), 5th ed., ed. William R. Trumble and Angus Stevenson, Oxford: Oxford University Press
  4. ^ a b c Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  5. ^ Dictionary.com Unabridged (2016), based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, New York: Random House
  6. ^ a b c Johnson, Samuel (1755), A Dictionary of the English Language, London; 4th ed. 1773; Johnson's Dictionary Online, ed. Beth Rapp Young et al.
  7. ^ a b The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (online 2024), 5th ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
  8. ^ a b c d Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster