unite
Pronunciation
- IPA: /juːˈnaɪt/[1]
Etymology
It is inherited from Middle English uniten,[2][3][4] borrowed from Late Latin ūnītus, the past participle of ūniō (“to join together, make one”),[2][3][4] from ūnus (“one”),[4][3][2] from Proto-Indo-European *oi-no- (“one, unique”).[2]
Earliest recorded meaning
To join together: probably before 1425, in a translation of Higden's Polychronicon, in Barnhart; the early 15th century in Etymonline,[4][2] where it also meant to annex one thing to another.[2]
Semantic evolution
The OED's first quotations for joining in a non-physical union are from 1432–50,[5] for combining into one body from 1591,[5] for joining physically from 1597,[5] and for joining hands in marriage from 1602.[5] The intransitive sense, to become one, is attested by the 1610s.[2][6]
Timeline
- probably before 1425 – uniten.[4]
- 1591 – to combine into one body.[5]
- 1602 – to join in marriage.[5]
- 1610s – to become one.[2]
Modern meaning
Verb
- To bring or join together into a whole.
- To join or act together for a common purpose.
- To have in combination: he united charm with severity.
Word family
- uniter
- unitable
- disunite
- reunite
- united
Related words
Usage notes
A unite was also an English gold coin first issued by James I in 1604,[5][3] its name coming from an obsolete adjective unite, united.[3]
References
- ^ Jones, Daniel (2011), Cambridge English Pronouncing Dictionary, 18th ed., ed. Peter Roach, Jane Setter and John Esling, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press
- ^ a b c d e f g h Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
- ^ a b c d e Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
- ^ a b c d e Barnhart, Robert K. (1988), The Barnhart Dictionary of Etymology
- ^ a b c d e f g Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press
- ^ Hoad, T. F., ed. (1986), The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology, Oxford: Clarendon Press