Etymologically
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resignation

Etymology and origin of the English word resignation

History Permalink
Confidence
Established
Formation
Borrowing
First attested
1387
Borrowed from
Old French resignation via Middle English
Ultimate origin
Medieval Latin (resignatio)

Pronunciation

  • IPA: /ˌɹɛz.ɪɡˈneɪ.ʃən/[1]

Etymology

It is inherited from Middle English resignacioun, borrowed from Old French resignation and directly from Medieval Latin resignātiō, resignātiōnem,[2][3][4] from Latin resignāre, to unseal, annul, give back, resign (see resign).[2][5]

Earliest recorded meaning

Abdication, the act of resigning an office, first a church benefice: 1387 in the OED, the late 14th century in Etymonline.[6][2]

Semantic evolution

Resignment was also used.[2] In general use the act of resigning an office is from 1412–20.[6] Surrender of oneself to God is from about 1450, or about 1500 in the Imitation of Christ,[6][2] and the non-spiritual sense, acquiescence or submission, from 1647.[6] In Scots law the return of a fee to a superior is from 1555.[6] A written statement of resigning, and in chess resigning a game (1969), are later uses.[7][6]

Timeline

  • 1387 – resigning a benefice.[6]
  • c. 1450 – surrender to God.[6]
  • 1555 – in Scots law.[6]
  • 1647 – acquiescence.[6]
  • 1969 – in chess.[6]

Modern meaning

Noun

  1. The act of resigning a position or office.
  2. A written or spoken statement that one is resigning.
  3. Patient acceptance of something unavoidable; submission.

Word family

  • nonresignation

References

  1. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  3. ^ Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  4. ^ Shorter Oxford English Dictionary on Historical Principles (2002), 5th ed., ed. William R. Trumble and Angus Stevenson, Oxford: Oxford University Press
  5. ^ Pearsall, Judy, ed. (1998), The New Oxford Dictionary of English, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  6. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press
  7. ^ The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (1992), 3rd ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin

Related etymologies

Cite this entry

“Resignation.” Etymologically, 17 Oct. 2026, etymologically.com/en/resignation. Accessed 17 Oct. 2026.

Last edited on . ·