Etymologically
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warehouse

This is the current revision of this entry, as edited by bogdan on 16 October 2026 at 14:53. This address is a permanent link to this version.
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Pronunciation

  • IPA: /ˈwɛə(ɹ)haʊs/[1]

Etymology

It is Middle English warehous, a compound of ware, goods, and house;[2][3] compare Dutch warenhuis and German Warenhaus.[2]

Earliest recorded meaning

A building for storing goods: 1349 in the OED, the mid-14th century in Etymonline.[4][2]

Semantic evolution

Figurative use is from 1610.[4] A tradesman's back shop (1580) and a mason's or carpenter's workshop (1530) are obsolete senses,[4] and the word was used from about 1730 as a more dignified word for a shop.[4] The verb, to deposit in a warehouse, especially in a government or bonded warehouse until duties are paid, is from 1766 in MWU and 1799 in Etymonline.[3][2] A large impersonal institution is American colloquial by 1970, and the verb in the sense to house people, such as the mentally ill, in poor institutions from 1972.[2][5]

Timeline

  • 1349 – a storehouse.[4]
  • 1610 – figurative use.[4]
  • 1766 – the verb.[3]
  • 1970 – an impersonal institution (US).[2]

Modern meaning

Noun

  1. A large building where goods are stored.
  2. A large, usually wholesale shop.

Verb

  1. To store goods in a warehouse, especially a bonded one.
  2. To house people in large institutions with poor services.

Word family

  • warehouser
  • miniwarehouse
  • warehouseman
  • bonded warehouse

References

  1. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  3. ^ a b c Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  4. ^ a b c d e f Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press
  5. ^ The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (1992), 3rd ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin