Etymologically
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parsnip

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Pronunciation

  • IPA: /ˈpɑː.snɪp/ (UK); /ˈpɑɹ.snɪp/ (US)[1]

Etymology

It is inherited from Middle English pasnepe, passenep, with an altered form,[2][3][4][5][6] borrowed from Old French pasnaie (“parsnip”) (modern French panais),[2][3][4][5] from Latin pastināca (“parsnip, carrot”),[2][3][4][5] from pastinum (“two-pronged dibble”), related to pastināre (“to dig up the ground”).[2][4][5][7] The ending was altered after Middle English nepe (“turnip”) (see neep),[2][3][4][8][6] because the parsnip was thought of as a kind of turnip.[3]

Earliest recorded meaning

The plant Pastinaca sativa, cultivated for its edible root (1373 in Barnhart, as pasnepe; 1398 in the OED; late 14th century in Etymonline).[3][9][4]

Semantic evolution

Etymonline says the plant was named from the shape of its root.[4] The Old French word could also mean the male member.[4] The r first appears in persenepe (before 1500) and parsnepe (1533).[3][6] The proverb fine words butter no parsnips, meaning that fine talk accomplishes nothing, is recorded by 1639.[9][10] The name was also applied, with qualifying words, to related plants such as the cow parsnip (1562).[9][11]

Timeline

  • 1373 – pasnepe.[3]
  • before 1500 – persenepe.[3]
  • 1533 – parsnepe.[3]
  • 1562 – applied to related plants.[9]
  • 1639 – fair words butter no parsnips.[10]

Modern meaning

Noun

  1. A strong-scented plant of the carrot family, Pastinaca sativa, cultivated for its long, whitish, edible root.
  2. The root of this plant, eaten as a vegetable.
  3. Any of several similar plants, such as the cow parsnip.

Word family

  • meadow parsnip

References

  1. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (1992), 3rd ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Barnhart, Robert K., ed. (1995), The Barnhart Concise Dictionary of Etymology, New York: HarperCollins
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  5. ^ a b c d Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary (2003), 11th ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  6. ^ a b c Hoad, T. F., ed. (1986), The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  7. ^ Klein, Ernest. A Comprehensive Etymological Dictionary of the English Language. 2 vols. Amsterdam: Elsevier, 1966–1967.
  8. ^ Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  9. ^ a b c d Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press
  10. ^ a b Weekley, Ernest (1921), An Etymological Dictionary of Modern English, London: John Murray
  11. ^ Collins English Dictionary (2023), Glasgow: HarperCollins