Etymologically
Log in

retire

This is an old revision of this entry, as edited by bogdan on 17 October 2026 at 02:27. It may differ significantly from the current version. This address is a permanent link to this version.
Current version Changes in this edit History

Pronunciation

  • IPA: /ɹɪˈtaɪə/ (UK); /ɹəˈtaɪɹ/ (US)[1]

Etymology

It is borrowed from Middle French retirer (“to withdraw”),[2][3][4] from re-, back, and Old French tirer, to draw (see tirade).[2][3][5]

Earliest recorded meaning

To retreat, go back, of armies: 1533, in Bellenden's translation of Livy.[2][5][3]

Semantic evolution

To go away for seclusion or rest is first recorded in 1538,[2][6] and the transitive sense, to withdraw something, from the 1540s.[3] To withdraw from an occupation or office is from 1667, in Pepys,[2][3][6] and to leave company and go to bed from 1670, in Dryden.[2][3] Retirement is from the 16th century,[4] and retiree from 1945, in American English.[2]

Timeline

  • 1533 – to retreat.[2]
  • 1538 – to withdraw for rest.[2]
  • 1667 – to leave one's occupation.[2]
  • 1670 – to go to bed.[2]
  • 1945 – retiree.[2]

Modern meaning

Verb

  1. To give up one's work or office, especially on reaching pensionable age.
  2. To withdraw, as for rest or seclusion.
  3. To go to bed.
  4. To fall back or retreat, as from battle.
  5. To withdraw from use or circulation.
  6. (baseball) To put out a batter.

Word family

  • retirer
  • retirant
  • unretire
  • retiree

Usage notes

In Scots, Yorkshire and Lincolnshire dialect, to retire a bill was to take it up and pay it when due.[7]

References

  1. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  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 Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  4. ^ a b Hoad, T. F., ed. (1986), The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  5. ^ a b Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  6. ^ a b Cresswell, Julia (2021), Oxford Dictionary of Word Origins, 3rd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
  7. ^ Wright, Joseph, ed. (1898–1905), The English Dialect Dictionary, 6 vols., Oxford: Henry Frowde; via EDD Online 4.0, University of Innsbruck (CC BY 4.0)