Etymologically
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join

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Pronunciation

  • IPA: /dʒɔɪn/[1]

Etymology

It is inherited from Middle English joinen,[2][3] borrowed from Old French joindre (“to join, connect, unite”) (stem joign-, join-),[4][3][5] from Latin iungere (“to join together, unite, yoke”),[4][2][3] from a nasalized form of Proto-Indo-European *yeug- (“to join”).[4][2] Latin iungere is related to iugum “yoke”, and so to English yoke.[3][5] The Latin verb also gave joint, juncture and junction.[6]

Earliest recorded meaning

“To unite things into a whole, put together”: about 1300,[4] probably before 1300 in Arthour and Merlin,[3] or 1297;[7] it is implied earlier in the surname Joinur, “joiner”, about 1195–1215.[3]

Semantic evolution

“To become associated, form an alliance” is from the early 14th century,[4] and “to unite two people in marriage” from the mid-14th century.[4] Of battle, “to begin”, it is from the late 14th century, and in Middle English join on meant “to attack”.[4] “To unite with, form a junction with” is from 1702, and “to go to and accompany someone” from 1713.[4] In geometry, “to connect two points with a line” is from 1660.[7] Join up, “to enlist in the army”, is from 1916,[4] and if you can't beat them, join them from 1953.[4] In Middle English join was sometimes short for enjoin.[4][7]

Timeline

  • c. 1195–1215 – the surname Joinur.[3]
  • 1297 – to put together.[7]
  • early 14th century – to form an alliance.[4]
  • mid-14th century – to unite in marriage.[4]
  • 1660 – to connect two points.[7]
  • 1713 – to go and accompany someone.[4]
  • 1916 – join up, to enlist.[4]

Modern meaning

Verb

  1. To bring or fasten together; to connect.
  2. To come together; to meet: where the rivers join.
  3. To become a member of: join a club.
  4. To go to and be with someone: join us for dinner.
  5. To take part in: join the fight.

Noun

  1. A place where two things are joined; a joint.

Word family

  • joinable
  • conjoin
  • interjoin
  • joiner
  • subjoin
  • underjoin
  • unjoin
  • rejoin
  • joint
  • junction
  • juncture
  • conjugal
  • conjunction
  • adjoin
  • enjoin
  • rejoinder
  • yoke
  • yoga
  • jugular

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 The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (2000), 4th ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin
  3. ^ a b c d e f g Barnhart, Robert K. (1988), The Barnhart Dictionary of Etymology
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  5. ^ a b Hoad, T. F., ed. (1986), The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  6. ^ Cresswell, Julia (2021), Oxford Dictionary of Word Origins, 3rd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
  7. ^ a b c d e Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press