surfeit

Pronunciation

• IPA: /ˈsɜː.fɪt/ (UK); /ˈsɝː.fɪt/ (US)^[1]

Etymology

It comes from Middle English surfet, surfait,^{[2][3][4][5][6]} from Old French surfait (“excess”),^{[2][3][4][5][6]} the past participle of surfaire “to overdo”,^{[2][3][4][5][6]} from sur- “over” and faire “to do”, from Latin facio (“to make, do”).^{[2][3][4][5][6]} It is related to fact.^[6]

Earliest recorded meaning

Excess, too much of something (before 1300; before 1325 in Barnhart).^[7][3][4]

Semantic evolution

In the 14th century the noun meant immoderate indulgence, especially gluttony in eating and drinking (1338),^[7][4] and the sickness caused by it (1362).^[7] The figurative sense, disgust caused by excess, is from the 1640s.^[4] The verb, to indulge to excess, is from the late 14th century,^[3][4] and to fill or supply to the point of disgust from 1592.^[3][7][4]

Timeline

• before 1300 – excess.^[7]
• 1338 – gluttony.^[7]
• 1362 – sickness from overindulgence.^[7]
• before 1387 – verb, to indulge to excess.^[3]
• 1592 – verb, to fill to excess.^[3][7]

Modern meaning

Noun

1. An excessive amount; an excess or glut.
2. Overindulgence in food or drink.
3. The discomfort or disgust caused by such overindulgence; satiety.

Verb

1. To feed or supply to excess, to the point of disgust.
2. To overindulge.

Word family

• surfeiter
• unsurfeited
• unsurfeiting

Related words

• forfeit
• counterfeit
• fact

Usage notes

Random House lists superabundance and superfluity as synonyms of the noun, and lack as its antonym; for the verb it gives stuff, gorge and fill.^[6]

References

1. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (1992), 3rd ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin
3. ^ a b c d e f g h i Barnhart, Robert K., ed. (1995), The Barnhart Concise Dictionary of Etymology, New York: HarperCollins
4. ^ a b c d e f g h i Harper, Douglas, Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
5. ^ a b c d Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary (2003), 11th ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
6. ^ a b c d e f Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary (1999), 2nd ed., New York: Random House
7. ^ 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