exam

Pronunciation

• IPA: /ɪɡˈzam/ (UK); /ɪɡˈzæm/, /ɛɡˈzæm/ (US)^[1]

Etymology

It is short for examination.^[2][3][4][5]

Earliest recorded meaning

A test of knowledge: 1848, as college students' slang;^[2] the OED has 1877 and MWU 1872.^[6][4]

Semantic evolution

Hoad dates the clipping to the 19th century.^[3] It is colloquial in origin but now used widely, and in North America also for a medical examination.^[5][7]

Timeline

• 1848 – student slang for an examination.^[2]
• 1877 – in the OED.^[6]

Modern meaning

Noun

1. An examination; a test of knowledge or ability.
2. (chiefly US) A medical examination.

Word family

• self-exam

Related words

• examination
• examine

References

1. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
3. ^ a b Hoad, T. F., ed. (1986), The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology, Oxford: Clarendon Press
4. ^ a b Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
5. ^ a b Shorter Oxford English Dictionary on Historical Principles (2002), 5th ed., ed. William R. Trumble and Angus Stevenson, Oxford: Oxford University Press
6. ^ a b Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press
7. ^ The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (1992), 3rd ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin