pal

Pronunciation

• IPA: /pæl/^[1]

Etymology

It is borrowed from English borrowed from Romani phal (“brother, comrade”), pal,^[2][3][4] a variant of continental Romani phral, plal, pral,^[2][3][5] probably from Sanskrit भ्रातृ (bhrā́tṛ, “brother”) (see brother).^[2][5][4] Barnhart notes that the l remains unaccounted for.^[2]

Earliest recorded meaning

A comrade, mate or chum, also an accomplice: 1681–82.^[2][6]

Semantic evolution

The American Heritage note observes that pal, like buddy and chum, sounds thoroughly informal and American, though it came from the language of the Romani people,^[7] whose Indic speech goes back to the border region of Iran and India.^[7] The verb, to associate as pals, is from 1879, first with in, with up by 1889 and around by 1915.^[3][6] Pally is from 1892,^[6] and the extended palsy-walsy is attested later.^[3]

Timeline

• 1681–82 – a comrade.^[2][6]
• 1879 – to pal (verb).^[3][6]
• 1889 – pal up.^[3]
• 1892 – pally.^[6]

Modern meaning

Noun

1. (informal) A friend; a chum.
2. An accomplice.

Verb

1. To associate as friends, usually with around or up.

Word family

• palship
• pally
• palimony
• pen pal

Related words

• palsy-walsy
• brother
• buddy
• chum
• mate

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 Barnhart, Robert K. (1988), The Barnhart Dictionary of Etymology
3. ^ a b c d e f Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
4. ^ a b Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
5. ^ a b Hoad, T. F., ed. (1986), The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology, Oxford: Clarendon Press
6. ^ a b c d e f Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press
7. ^ a b The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (1992), 3rd ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin