Etymologically
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initial

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Pronunciation

  • IPA: /ɪˈnɪʃ.ᵊl/[1]

Etymology

It is borrowed from Middle French initial or directly from Latin initiālis (“initial, of the beginning”),[2][3] from initium (“a beginning, an entrance”),[2][4] the noun use of the neuter past participle of inīre (“to go into, enter upon, begin”),[2][5] from in- (“into”) and īre (“to go”),[2][4] from Proto-Indo-European *ei- (“to go”),[2] the root also of Sanskrit éti and Greek eîmi “goes, go”.[5] It is related to initiate, initiative and exit.[5][4]

Earliest recorded meaning

Of or pertaining to a beginning: 1526 in the OED and Barnhart,[6][4] the 1520s in Etymonline.[2]

Semantic evolution

“Standing at the beginning of a word or paragraph” is from 1622,[6] the 1620s in Etymonline,[2] which led to the noun, the first letter of a name, in 1627 according to Barnhart and Merriam-Webster.[4][3] The verb, to mark or sign with initials, is from 1837 in Etymonline[2] and 1864, American English, in Barnhart and the OED.[4][6] In mathematics initial conditions are from 1834,[6] and the initial teaching alphabet, a 44-letter phonetic alphabet, from 1962.[6]

Timeline

  • 1526 – of a beginning.[6][4]
  • 1622 – standing at the beginning of a word.[6]
  • 1627 – noun, the first letter of a name.[4][3]
  • 1834 – initial conditions.[6]
  • 1837 – verb, to sign with initials.[2]
  • 1962 – initial teaching alphabet.[6]

Modern meaning

Adjective

  1. Of or occurring at the beginning; first.
  2. Of a letter, standing at the beginning of a word.

Noun

  1. The first letter of a name, or initials, the first letters of a person's names.
  2. A large, often decorated letter at the beginning of a chapter or manuscript section.

Verb

  1. To mark or sign with one's initials, as a sign of approval.

Word family

  • initially
  • initialness
  • initialer
  • preinitial
  • initialism
  • initial teaching alphabet
  • initiate
  • initiation
  • initiative
  • initialize
  • exit
  • itinerary
  • commence

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 g h i Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  3. ^ a b c Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h Barnhart, Robert K. (1988), The Barnhart Dictionary of Etymology
  5. ^ a b c Hoad, T. F., ed. (1986), The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology, Oxford: Clarendon 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