Etymologically
Log in

supervisory

History Permalink

Etymology and origin of the English word supervisory

Confidence
Established
Formation
Derivation
First attested
1815 J. Lowell, Are you Christian or Calvinist?
Ultimate origin
Latin videō
Etymology tree
inherited borrowed derived
English supervise
English supervisory

Pronunciation

  • /ˌsuːpə(ɹ)ˈvaɪzəɹɪ/[1]

Etymology

It is formed from English supervise + -ory.[2][3][4][5] Merriam-Webster instead forms it from Medieval Latin supervīsus, the past participle of supervideō (“to supervise”), and the English suffix.[6] Supervise itself is from the same participle, supervīsus, of supervideō, to oversee or inspect, which is formed from super- (“over”) and videō (“to see”).[3][2]

Earliest recorded meaning

Having the function of supervising; of or relating to supervision: 1815, in J. Lowell's Are you Christian or Calvinist?.[2] Etymonline dates the word to 1828,[3] Dictionary.com to 1840–50,[5] and the Shorter Oxford to the mid 19th century.[4]

Semantic evolution

The adjective has kept its first sense, of or relating to the oversight of others' work.[2][6] From 1892, first in a United States patent, it was also used in electronics of a circuit, device or program that signals or responds to the state of a telephone line, power supply or other system.[2]

Timeline

  • 1815 – having the function of supervising; relating to supervision.[2] Etymonline dates the word to 1828.[3]
  • 1892 – in electronics, of a circuit or device that monitors the state of a line or supply.[2]

Meanings

Adjective

  1. Of, relating to, or involving supervision: She was promoted to a supervisory post.[7][6][2]
  2. (electronics) Of a circuit or device: indicating or responding to the state of a line, power supply or other system.[2]

Word family

  • nonsupervisory

References

  1. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i Oxford English Dictionary Online (accessed March 2026), Oxford: Oxford University Press
  3. ^ a b c d Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  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. ^ a b Dictionary.com Unabridged (2016), based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, New York: Random House
  6. ^ a b c Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  7. ^ Collins English Dictionary (2023), Glasgow: HarperCollins
Cite this entry

“Supervisory.” Etymologically, 31 Oct. 2026, etymologically.com/en/supervisory. Accessed 1 Nov. 2026.

Last edited on . ·