revelation

Pronunciation

• IPA: /ˌrev.əlˈeɪ.ʃən/^[1]

Etymology

It is borrowed from Old French revelation, or directly from Late Latin revēlātiō,^[2][3][4] from revēlāre, to unveil, lay bare (see reveal).^[2][3][5]

Earliest recorded meaning

The disclosure of divine knowledge to man: about 1303, in Mannyng's Handlyng Synne.^[2][6][3]

Semantic evolution

An instance of such disclosure, something revealed, is from about 1374.^[6] The last book of the New Testament, the Revelation of St John, is so called from the late 14th century,^[3][6] and as Revelations by the 1690s.^[3] A striking disclosure of something previously unknown is from 1862,^[3][6] the mid-19th century in the NODE.^[5]

Timeline

• c. 1303 – divine revelation.^[2][6]
• c. 1374 – something revealed.^[6]
• c. 1400 – the Book of Revelation.^[6]
• 1862 – a striking disclosure.^[3][6]

Modern meaning

Noun

1. A surprising fact that is made known, or the act of making it known.
2. (theology) A disclosure of divine truth or will.
3. Revelation: the last book of the New Testament.

Word family

• revelational
• nonrevelation
• revelationist
• self-revelation

Related words

• revelator
• revelatory
• reveal
• veil
• apocalypse

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 Barnhart, Robert K. (1988), The Barnhart Dictionary of Etymology
3. ^ a b c d e f g Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
4. ^ Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
5. ^ a b Pearsall, Judy, ed. (1998), The New Oxford Dictionary of English, Oxford: Clarendon Press
6. ^ a b c d e f g h Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press