irrelevant

Pronunciation

• IPA: /ɪˈrel.ə.vənt/^[1]

Etymology

It is formed from ir-, the assimilated form of in-, not (see in-), and relevant.^[2][3][4]

Earliest recorded meaning

Not relevant or pertinent: the 1680s in Etymonline, the 16th century in Hoad,^[2][3] 1786 in the OED and Merriam-Webster.^[5][4]

Semantic evolution

Irrelevancy is recorded from the 16th century in Hoad,^[3] and irrelevantly from 1818.^[5] Fowler observed that irrelevant and relieving are the same word: what is irrelevant does not relieve or help with the problem in hand.^[2]

Timeline

• 1680s – irrelevant.^[2]
• 1786 – first OED quotation.^[5]
• 1818 – irrelevantly.^[5]

Modern meaning

Adjective

1. Not connected with or relevant to the matter in hand; not important.

Word family

• irrelevantly
• irrelevancy
• irrelevance

Related words

• relevant
• relieve
• relevance

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 Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
3. ^ a b c Hoad, T. F., ed. (1986), The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology, Oxford: Clarendon Press
4. ^ a b Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
5. ^ a b c d Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press