Etymologically
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joint

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Pronunciation

  • IPA: /dʒɔɪnt/[1]

Etymology

It is inherited from Middle English jointe,[2] borrowed from Old French joint (“joint of the body”), past participle of joindre (“to join”),[3][4][5] from Latin iūnctus (“united, connected”), past participle of iungere (“to join together”),[3][4] from a nasalised form of Proto-Indo-European *yeug- (“to join”).[3] The adjective is from Old French jointiz “joined together” and the participle joint.[3][4] It is related to join, junction, conjunction and yoke.[4][3]

Earliest recorded meaning

Where two bones meet and move against each other: about 1290 in the OED,[6] about 1300 in Etymonline and Barnhart.[3][4]

Semantic evolution

In general use, of insect and plant parts and of the place where two parts of a structure meet, it is from the late 14th century.[3][6] Out of joint, of a dislocated bone, is from 1393, and figuratively, “disordered”, from the early 15th century.[6][3] A cut of meat on the bone is from the early 15th century.[3] The adjective, “united, sharing”, is from 1424[4] or the early 15th century,[3] and joint-stock from the 1610s.[3] The slang sense “a place, an establishment”, especially one where people meet for shady purposes, is from 1877, after earlier Anglo-Irish use (1821), perhaps of a private side room joined to a main one;[3][4] in the United States it was an opium den by 1883.[3] A marijuana cigarette is from 1938, perhaps as something smoked in common;[3] earlier it meant a hypodermic outfit (1935).[3] “Prison” is recorded from 1953, in William Burroughs's Junkie.[4][3]

Timeline

  • c. 1290 – a joint of the body.[6]
  • late 14th century – a joint in a structure.[3]
  • 1393 – out of joint.[6]
  • 1424 – adjective, shared.[4]
  • 1610s – joint-stock.[3]
  • 1877 – a place, a dive.[3][4]
  • 1938 – a marijuana cigarette.[3]
  • 1953 – prison.[4][3]

Modern meaning

Noun

  1. A place where two or more things are joined.
  2. A point where two bones meet, especially one that allows movement.
  3. A large piece of meat for roasting.
  4. (slang) A cheap or disreputable bar or nightclub; any place.
  5. (slang) A marijuana cigarette.
  6. (slang) Prison.

Adjective

  1. Shared by two or more: a joint account.
  2. Acting together; united: joint owners.
  3. Involving both houses of a legislature.

Verb

  1. To join with a joint, or provide with joints.
  2. To cut meat into joints.

Word family

  • jointed
  • jointedly
  • jointedness
  • jointly
  • jointless
  • subjoint
  • unjoint
  • ball joint
  • join
  • junction
  • juncture
  • conjunction
  • yoke
  • jointure
  • adjoin

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 l m n o p q r s t u Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Barnhart, Robert K. (1988), The Barnhart Dictionary of Etymology
  5. ^ Pearsall, Judy, ed. (1998), The New Oxford Dictionary of English, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  6. ^ a b c d e Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press