Etymologically
Log in

objective

This is the current revision of this entry, as edited by bogdan on 16 October 2026 at 03:24. This address is a permanent link to this version.
Changes in this edit History

Pronunciation

  • IPA: /əbˈdʒek.tɪv/[1]

Etymology

It was formed in English from object and -ive, on the pattern of Medieval Latin objectīvus (used by Duns Scotus),[2][3][4] from objectum (“object”).[3][2] MWU derives it from Italian obiettivo, from the same Medieval Latin word.[5]

Earliest recorded meaning

In philosophy, pertaining to or considered in relation to its object, the thing as perceived or thought: 1620 in the OED and Barnhart.[6][2] This older sense, the reverse of the modern one, was the only one until the mid-17th century.[3]

Semantic evolution

Existing outside the mind, real, opposed to subjective in the modern sense, is from 1647.[6][2] It became common only in the late 18th century, boosted by translations from German.[3] Of persons, writings and art, dealing with outward things rather than one's feelings, unbiased, is from 1838 in the OED, 1855 in Barnhart, influenced by German objektiv.[6][2][3] Medical symptoms observed by the doctor are objective from 1877.[6] The noun meant something objective to the mind from 1738;[2][3] the lens nearest the object in a microscope or telescope, earlier the object glass, is a later use.[2] A goal or aim is from 1881, from the military objective point (1852 in Etymonline, 1864 in Barnhart), probably reinforced by French objectif.[3][2] Objectivity is from 1803.[2]

Timeline

  • 1620 – relating to an object (philosophy).[6]
  • 1647 – real, existing outside the mind.[6]
  • 1738 – the noun.[2]
  • 1838 – unbiased.[6]
  • 1864 – objective point (military).[2]
  • 1881 – a goal.[3][2]

Modern meaning

Adjective

  1. Not influenced by personal feelings or opinions; fair and impartial.
  2. Existing independently of the mind; real.
  3. Based on facts that can be observed.
  4. (grammar) Of the case of a pronoun used as an object, such as me or them.

Noun

  1. An aim or goal.
  2. The lens in a microscope or telescope nearest the object.

Word family

  • objectively
  • objectiveness
  • objectivity
  • Objectivism
  • objectivize
  • unobjective
  • nonobjective
  • objective correlative

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 e f g h i j k l Barnhart, Robert K. (1988), The Barnhart Dictionary of Etymology
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  4. ^ Shorter Oxford English Dictionary on Historical Principles (2002), 5th ed., ed. William R. Trumble and Angus Stevenson, Oxford: Oxford University Press
  5. ^ Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  6. ^ a b c d e f g Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press