into

Etymology

It is inherited from Middle English into,^[2][3] inherited from Old English intō, formed from Old English in + tō, the adverb in and the preposition to.^[4][5][2][6] The two were originally separate words, as in "out to", "up to" and "off to": the adverb gave the general direction of motion and the preposition the particular point.^[4][5][7] The combination arose in Old English as the case endings weakened, so that in with the accusative could no longer distinguish "into the house" from "in the house".^[5][8] English gradually came to treat it as one word.^[4] Compare onto and unto,^[8] and the parallel formation intill.^[4]

Earliest recorded meaning

To the inside of a place, after a verb of motion: the OED's first record is the early Old English Anglo-Saxon Chronicle,^[4] and Barnhart cites Alfred's translation of the Pastoral Care, from before 900.^[5] Etymonline glosses the Old English word as "into, to, against, in".^[8]

Semantic evolution

From motion into a space the word soon spread to entering a state or condition (into temptation), a realm of thought or a department of the mind, and a group one joins; all of these are Old English,^[4] and so is the use for direction without motion, after verbs such as look and search.^[4] Before 1225 it also marked a new occupation and the form or substance that something turns into.^[4] A sense "into the possession of" ran from Old English to 1883.^[4] Johnson (1755) first defined it as "noting entrance with regard to place".^[9] The informal be into, to be keenly interested in something, is American youth slang of the late 1960s,^[8][5] and Barnhart traces it to phrases like get into and go into, used of an occupation or field from about 1712.^[5] Scots dialect uses into for "in, within", and to be into a person for scolding someone; in south Pembrokeshire it meant "except".^[10]

Timeline

• before 900 – Old English intō, to the inside of a place.^[5][4]
• before 1225 – entering on a new occupation or activity.^[4]
• before 1225 – the substance or form that something becomes.^[4]
• c. 1384 – entering a state expressed by a concrete noun, as into the field.^[4]
• c. 1712 – get into, go into, of an occupation or field of activity.^[5]
• 1967 – be into, to be keenly interested in, in American youth slang.^[8] Barnhart first records it about 1969.^[5]

Meanings

Preposition

1. To the inside of: She walked into the kitchen.^[11][12][4]
2. Into the middle of, so as to be surrounded by: He waded into the river.^[12]
3. Indicating a change of state or form: The water froze into ice.^[11][12][4]
4. To the activity or occupation of: He went into nursing.^[11][4]
5. So as to be included in: The clause was written into the contract.^[11][4]
6. So as to hit or meet; against: The van ran into a fence.^[12][8]
7. In the direction of, without any motion: They looked into the complaint.^[4]
8. (mathematics) Indicating a dividend: five into twenty is four.^[12]
9. (informal) Keenly interested in: He's really into chess.^[12][11][5]

Related words

• in
• onto
• to
• unto

Usage notes

The OED writes into as one word when the two parts express a single idea, and as two where they express distinct ones, as in "he went in to the patient".^[4] Word division in Old and Middle English manuscripts varies a great deal, and in printed texts it often reflects the choices of modern editors.^[4]

References

1. ^ a b Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
3. ^ Klein, Ernest. A Comprehensive Etymological Dictionary of the English Language. 2 vols. Amsterdam: Elsevier, 1966–1967.
4. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t Oxford English Dictionary Online (accessed March 2026), Oxford: Oxford University Press
5. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Barnhart, Robert K. (1988), The Barnhart Dictionary of Etymology
6. ^ Hoad, T. F., ed. (1986), The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology, Oxford: Clarendon Press
7. ^ Shorter Oxford English Dictionary on Historical Principles (2002), 5th ed., ed. William R. Trumble and Angus Stevenson, Oxford: Oxford University Press
8. ^ a b c d e f Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
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. ^ Wright, Joseph, ed. (1898–1905), The English Dialect Dictionary, 6 vols., Oxford: Henry Frowde; via EDD Online 4.0, University of Innsbruck (CC BY 4.0)
11. ^ a b c d e The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (online 2024), 5th ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
12. ^ a b c d e f Collins English Dictionary (2023), Glasgow: HarperCollins