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tenure

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Pronunciation

  • IPA: UK /ˈten.jə/, US /ˈten.jɚ/[1]

Etymology

It is borrowed from Anglo-Norman tenure (“a tenure, estate in land”) and Middle French tenure,[2][3] from Old French tenir (“to hold”) (see tenable and tenant),[2][3][4][5] from Latin teneō (“to hold”).[3][5][6] Merriam-Webster gives the Old French form teneüre, from Medieval Latin tenitūra.[6]

Earliest recorded meaning

The holding of a tenement, especially under English law: 1292 in the OED, 1414 in the Rolls of Parliament in Barnhart, the early 15th century in Etymonline.[7][2][3]

Semantic evolution

The terms of service under which land is held are from 1436,[7] and a holding itself from 1439.[7] The general sense, the holding of a status or office, is first recorded in 1599, in Ben Jonson's Cynthia's Revels,[2][7] which led to the sense of the period of holding.[3] Guaranteed tenure of office, at first in American universities and schools, is from 1957,[3][7] tenured from 1961 and tenurable from 1977.[3]

Timeline

  • 1292 – the holding of a tenement.[7]
  • 1436 – terms of holding.[7]
  • 1599 – the holding of an office.[2][7]
  • 1957 – guaranteed tenure (US).[3][7]
  • 1961 – tenured.[3]

Modern meaning

Noun

  1. The holding of an office or position.
  2. The length of time an office or position is held; a term.
  3. A permanent post, especially for teachers and lecturers, guaranteeing employment until retirement.
  4. (property law) The holding of land or property, and the terms on which it is held.

Word family

  • tenurial
  • tenurially
  • tenurable
  • subtenure
  • tenure-track

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 e Barnhart, Robert K. (1988), The Barnhart Dictionary of Etymology
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  4. ^ Hoad, T. F., ed. (1986), The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  5. ^ a b Pearsall, Judy, ed. (1998), The New Oxford Dictionary of English, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  6. ^ a b Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  7. ^ a b c d e f g h i Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press