Etymologically
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release

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Pronunciation

  • IPA: /rɪˈliːs/[1]

Etymology

It is inherited from Middle English relesen, borrowed from Old French relaissier (“to relinquish, let go”), also relesser,[2][3][4] a variant of relacher (“to release, relax”),[2][5] from Latin relaxāre (“to loosen”),[2][6] the source of relax.[3][7] Latin relaxāre is from re- (“back”) and laxāre (“to loosen”), from Proto-Indo-European *sleg- (“to be slack”).[2] The noun is Middle English reles, from Old French reles, a back-formation from relesser.[2][4]

Earliest recorded meaning

To withdraw, revoke or cancel a decree or sentence: about 1300[2] or 1297.[8] The noun first meant deliverance from trouble or pain, in the early 14th century.[2][8]

Semantic evolution

“To relieve, alleviate” is from the mid-14th century, as is “to set free from a duty”.[2] Barnhart notes that “to set free, let go” is first recorded about 1350, perhaps weakened from the earlier “to free from pain”.[3] Setting free from prison is from the late 14th century,[2] and in law the release of property is from about 1400.[2] The spelling release is from 1464.[3] The modern senses of publication are recent: to release news to the press is from 1904, a film from 1912 and a music recording by 1962.[2] A news item or statement for the press is a release by 1927,[2] and a written permission to publish from 1965.[8] In psychology, release from emotional tension is from 1915.[8] As a euphemism for dismissal from a job, it is American by 1904.[2]

Timeline

  • 1297 – to revoke, cancel.[8]
  • early 14th century – noun, deliverance.[2]
  • c. 1350 – to set free.[3]
  • c. 1400 – legal release of property.[2]
  • 1464 – the spelling release.[3]
  • 1904 – to release news.[2]
  • 1912 – to release a film.[2]
  • 1927 – a press release.[2]
  • 1962 – a music release.[2]

Modern meaning

Verb

  1. To set free from confinement or restraint.
  2. To let go of something held or fastened.
  3. To free from a debt or obligation.
  4. To make available to the public, as a film, recording or piece of news.
  5. (law) To give up a right or claim to another.

Noun

  1. Freedom from confinement, restraint or suffering.
  2. A device that unfastens a mechanism.
  3. Something issued for the public, such as a film, recording or press release.
  4. (law) A document giving up a claim or right.

Word family

  • releasable
  • releasability
  • controlled-release
  • prerelease
  • time-release
  • timed-release
  • nonrelease
  • releaser
  • relax
  • relish
  • lax

Usage notes

The OED records an unrelated, obsolete release meaning “relish”, from 1604.[8]

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 m n o p q r s Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  3. ^ a b c d e f Barnhart, Robert K. (1988), The Barnhart Dictionary of Etymology
  4. ^ a b Shorter Oxford English Dictionary on Historical Principles (2002), 5th ed., ed. William R. Trumble and Angus Stevenson, Oxford: Oxford University Press
  5. ^ The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (2000), 4th ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin
  6. ^ Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  7. ^ Klein, Ernest. A Comprehensive Etymological Dictionary of the English Language. 2 vols. Amsterdam: Elsevier, 1966–1967.
  8. ^ a b c d e f Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press