instance

Pronunciation

• IPA: /ˈɪn.stəns/^[1]

Etymology

It is inherited from Middle English instaunce,^[2] borrowed from Old French instance (“effort; urgency, eagerness, anxiety”) (13th century),^[3][4] from Latin instantia (“presence; earnestness, urgency”), literally “a standing near”,^[3][4] from instans, present participle of instare “to be present, press upon”, from in- “upon” and stare “to stand”.^[5][3] In logic, the sense “example” is from Medieval Latin instantia “an example to the contrary”, which translated Greek enstasis “objection”.^[3][5][6] It is related to instant.^[4][3]

Earliest recorded meaning

Urgency in speech or action, urgent entreaty: about 1340 in the OED,^[7] the late 14th century in Etymonline.^[3] Barnhart's first example, about 1380 in Chaucer's Boethius, is “the present time”.^[4]

Semantic evolution

The original sense of urgency survives in at the instance of, at the request of.^[5][8] In logic a case or example, at first one cited against a general assertion, is from the early 15th century in Etymonline,^[3] 1573 in the OED,^[7] the late 16th century in the New Oxford;^[5] from it came the sense of a single occurrence.^[5] For instance, as an example, is from the 1650s,^[3] and a for instance from 1953 in American English.^[3] A suit or process at law gave a court of first instance, and hence in the first instance, as a first step, in the 17th century.^[8] The verb meant to urge or entreat from 1425 to the mid-18th century,^[4][6] and to cite an instance from 1601.^[4][7]

Timeline

• c. 1340 – urgency, entreaty.^[7]
• c. 1380 – the present time.^[4]
• 1425 – verb, to urge.^[4]
• 1573 – a case cited in objection.^[7]
• 1601 – verb, to cite an example.^[4][7]
• 1650s – for instance.^[3]
• 17th century – in the first instance.^[8]
• 1953 – a for instance.^[3]

Modern meaning

Noun

1. An example cited to prove or disprove a point.
2. A case or occurrence: in this instance.
3. A step in a process: in the first instance.
4. A request or suggestion: at the instance of the president.
5. (law) A legal proceeding; a suit.
6. (archaic) Urgent solicitation.

Verb

1. To give as an example; to cite.
2. To show by an example; to exemplify.

Word family

• instancy
• instant
• instantaneous
• instantiate
• instantly

Related words

• for instance
• stand

References

1. ^ Jones, Daniel (2011), Cambridge English Pronouncing Dictionary, 18th ed., ed. Peter Roach, Jane Setter and John Esling, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press
2. ^ Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
4. ^ a b c d e f g h i Barnhart, Robert K. (1988), The Barnhart Dictionary of Etymology
5. ^ a b c d e Pearsall, Judy, ed. (1998), The New Oxford Dictionary of English, Oxford: Clarendon Press
6. ^ a b Shorter Oxford English Dictionary on Historical Principles (2002), 5th ed., ed. William R. Trumble and Angus Stevenson, Oxford: Oxford University Press
7. ^ a b c d e f Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press
8. ^ a b c Hoad, T. F., ed. (1986), The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology, Oxford: Clarendon Press