Etymologically
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imperial

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Pronunciation

  • IPA: /ɪmˈpɪə.ɹi.əl/ (UK); /ɪmˈpɪɹ.i.əl/ (US)[1]

Etymology

It is Middle English imperial, emperial, borrowed from Old French imperial, emperial,[2][3][4] from Latin imperiālis (“of the empire or emperor”), from imperium (“command, empire”) (see empire), from imperāre (“to command”).[2][3][5]

Earliest recorded meaning

Of an empire or emperor: about 1380, in Chaucer's translation of Boethius;[2] having a commanding quality, the late 14th century in Etymonline.[3]

Semantic evolution

Of England, asserting its independence of any foreign power, it is from 1532–33,[6] and of the British Empire as a whole from 1774.[3][6] Of imposing size or excellence is from 1731.[3] Belonging to the British non-metric system of weights and measures, as the imperial gallon, is from the 19th century.[7][8] The noun meant a member of the emperor's party (1520s), a gold coin (1670s), and a small pointed beard like that of Napoleon III.[3][7] The imperial presidency is traced to Arthur Schlesinger Jr.'s book of 1974.[3]

Timeline

  • c. 1380 – of an empire.[2]
  • 1532 – of independent England.[6]
  • 1731 – of imposing size.[3]
  • 1774 – of the British Empire.[3][6]
  • 1974 – imperial presidency.[3]

Modern meaning

Adjective

  1. Of or relating to an empire or an emperor.
  2. Majestic or commanding; befitting an emperor.
  3. (British) Of the traditional non-metric system of measures: an imperial gallon.

Noun

  1. A small pointed beard on the lower lip and chin.

Word family

  • imperially
  • imperialness
  • interimperial
  • nonimperial
  • postimperial
  • preimperial
  • unimperial
  • imperialism

References

  1. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d 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. ^ Hoad, T. F., ed. (1986), The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  5. ^ Pearsall, Judy, ed. (1998), The New Oxford Dictionary of English, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  6. ^ a b c d Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press
  7. ^ a b The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (1992), 3rd ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin
  8. ^ Collins English Dictionary (2023), Glasgow: HarperCollins