miasma

Pronunciation

• IPA: /miˈæzmə/, /maɪˈæzmə/^[1]

Etymology

It is borrowed from New Latin miasma (“noxious vapours”),^[2][3][4][5] from Ancient Greek μίασμα (míasma, “stain, pollution, defilement”),^{[6][2][3][4][5]} from miaínein “to pollute”.^{[6][2][3][4][5]} An earlier English form was miasm (1640s), from French miasme.^[3]

Earliest recorded meaning

Infectious exhalations from rotting organic matter, polluting the air (1665).^[7][2][3][4]

Semantic evolution

Before germs were understood, miasma was believed to rise from swamps and decaying matter and to cause disease.^[6][3][7] The word has since been extended to any heavy vapour, such as tobacco smoke, and to an oppressive or corrupting influence or atmosphere.^[6][4][5]

Timeline

• 1640s – miasm.^[3]
• 1665 – noxious vapours causing disease.^[7][2][3][4]

Modern meaning

Noun

1. A harmful or oppressive atmosphere or influence.
2. A poisonous vapour formerly believed to rise from swamps and rotting matter and to cause disease.
3. A thick, heavy vapour, as of smoke.

Word family

• miasmal
• miasmatic
• miasmic
• miasmically

References

1. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e Barnhart, Robert K., ed. (1995), The Barnhart Concise Dictionary of Etymology, New York: HarperCollins
3. ^ a b c d e f g h Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
4. ^ a b c d e f Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary (2003), 11th ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
5. ^ a b c d Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary (1999), 2nd ed., New York: Random House
6. ^ a b c d The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (1992), 3rd ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin
7. ^ a b c Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press