Etymologically
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familiar

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Pronunciation

  • IPA: UK /fəˈmɪl.i.ə/, US /fəˈmɪl.jɚ/[1]

Etymology

It is inherited from Middle English familier,[2] borrowed from Old French familier (“related; friendly”),[3][4] from Latin familiāris (“of a household, domestic; intimate, friendly”),[3][5] a dissimilation of *familiālis, from familia (“household”),[3][5] from famulus “servant”.[6][7] It is related to family.[3][4]

Earliest recorded meaning

Of persons, “on a family footing, extremely friendly, intimate”: about 1340 in the OED,[8] the mid-14th century in Etymonline.[3]

Semantic evolution

“Of or pertaining to one's family or household” is from about 1386,[8] the late 14th century in Etymonline.[3] “Unduly intimate”, too familiar, is from about 1450,[8] and of animals, “tame, domesticated”, from 1483.[8] Of things, “known from long association”, it is from the late 15th century,[3] and “ordinary, usual” from the 1590s.[3] As a noun it meant a close friend from the late 14th century,[3] and a member of a great person's household from the 13th century in Merriam-Webster.[2] A familiar spirit is from the 1560s, and the noun familiar, a demon or spirit that answers one's call, from the 1580s.[3] Johnson in 1755 gave its senses as “domestic” and “affable, not formal”.[9]

Timeline

  • 13th century – noun, a member of a household.[2]
  • c. 1340 – intimate, friendly.[8]
  • c. 1386 – of a family.[8]
  • late 14th century – noun, a close friend.[3]
  • c. 1450 – unduly intimate.[8]
  • 1483 – of animals, tame.[8]
  • late 15th century – well known.[3]
  • 1560s – familiar spirit.[3]
  • 1590s – ordinary, usual.[3]

Modern meaning

Adjective

  1. Often seen or met; common or well known.
  2. Having a good knowledge of something; acquainted: familiar with the rules.
  3. On close friendly terms; intimate.
  4. Relaxed and informal.
  5. Taking undue liberties; presumptuous.

Noun

  1. A close friend or companion.
  2. An attendant spirit, often in the form of an animal.
  3. A person who serves in the household of a high official, as of the pope.

Word family

  • familiarly
  • familiarness
  • familiarise
  • familiarize
  • overfamiliar
  • familiarity

Usage notes

The American Heritage distinguishes familiar from close, intimate, confidential and chummy: familiar suggests an easy, informal association from frequent contact, close a strong emotional attachment, intimate bonds formed by shared experience, and confidential closeness founded on trust.[10]

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 Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  4. ^ a b Shorter Oxford English Dictionary on Historical Principles (2002), 5th ed., ed. William R. Trumble and Angus Stevenson, Oxford: Oxford University Press
  5. ^ a b Klein, Ernest. A Comprehensive Etymological Dictionary of the English Language. 2 vols. Amsterdam: Elsevier, 1966–1967.
  6. ^ Pearsall, Judy, ed. (1998), The New Oxford Dictionary of English, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  7. ^ Partridge, Eric (1966), Origins: A Short Etymological Dictionary of Modern English, 4th ed., London: Routledge & Kegan Paul
  8. ^ a b c d e f g h Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press
  9. ^ Johnson, Samuel (1755), A Dictionary of the English Language, London; 4th ed. 1773; Johnson's Dictionary Online, ed. Beth Rapp Young et al.
  10. ^ The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (1992), 3rd ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin