trim

Pronunciation

• IPA: /ˈtɹɪm/^[1]

Etymology

It is apparently inherited from Middle English trimmen (“to exhort, strengthen; to make firm”),^[2][3] probably inherited from Old English trymian (“to strengthen, confirm, set in order, arrange”) (also trymman),^[2][4][5] from trum (“strong, firm”), from Proto-Germanic *trum-, from a suffixed form of Proto-Indo-European *deru- (“to be firm, solid”).^[2] The word is missing from the record between about 1250 and the 16th century, so the connection is uncertain;^[2][6][7] Hoad calls it of obscure origin.^[6]

Earliest recorded meaning

To put in proper condition or good working order: the 1510s in Etymonline, about 1521 in Merriam-Webster;^[2][4] Barnhart has trimmen, to make firm or fit, before 1460.^[3]

Semantic evolution

Little recorded in the Middle Ages, the word burst into use in the 16th century for many purposes: fitting out a ship, preparing a candle wick, repairing and decorating;^[7] by 1550, the OED says, it had become exceedingly common in nearly all its chief senses.^[2] To adorn hats or garments with flowers or ribbons is from the 1510s,^[2] to dress the hair or clip a beard in Palsgrave (1530),^[2] and to cut back plants by the 1590s.^[2] The adjective, in good order, neat, is from 1503–13, first in the adverb trimly,^[8][6] and the noun, the state of a ship as to fitness for sailing, from the 1580s (1590 in the OED).^[2][8] Ornament or decoration is from the 1570s,^[2] visible woodwork of a house from 1884,^[2] and ornamental additions to a car from 1922.^[2] In politics, to trim was to keep a cautious neutrality between parties, the origin of trimmer.^[9][6]

Timeline

• before 1460 – trimmen, to make fit.^[3]
• 1503–13 – trim, in good order (adjective).^[8]
• 1510s – to put in good order; to adorn.^[2]
• 1590 – the trim of a ship.^[8]
• 1884 – the woodwork of a house.^[2]
• 1922 – ornamental additions to a car.^[2]

Modern meaning

Verb

1. To make neat by cutting, clipping or pruning; to cut off what is unwanted.
2. To reduce: trim the budget.
3. To decorate or adorn, as clothing with lace or ribbon.
4. To adjust the balance of a ship, submarine or aircraft, or to set the sails to the wind.

Adjective

1. Neat and smart in appearance; in good order.
2. Slim and fit.

Noun

1. State of order or condition: in good trim.
2. Decoration or ornament; the contrasting edging of clothing or the ornamental parts of a building or vehicle.
3. A cutting or clipping, as of the hair.

Word family

• trimly
• trimness
• overtrim
• pretrim
• trim tab

Related words

• trimmer
• trimming
• tree
• true
• trust

Usage notes

Trim was also an obsolete Scots name for a kind of ale.^[10]

References

1. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
3. ^ a b c Barnhart, Robert K. (1988), The Barnhart Dictionary of Etymology
4. ^ a b Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
5. ^ The Chambers Dictionary (2008), 11th ed., Edinburgh: Chambers Harrap
6. ^ a b c d Hoad, T. F., ed. (1986), The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology, Oxford: Clarendon Press
7. ^ a b Cresswell, Julia (2021), Oxford Dictionary of Word Origins, 3rd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
8. ^ a b c d Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press
9. ^ The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (1992), 3rd ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin
10. ^ 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)