wrist

Pronunciation

• IPA: /rɪst/^[1]

Etymology

It is inherited from Old English wrist (probably before 940),^[2][3] from *wristiz,^[2][3][4] cognate with Old Frisian wrist, Middle Dutch wrist, Middle High German rist “wrist, ankle” (modern German Rist “instep”) and Old Norse rist “instep”.^[2][3][5] It is related to Old English wrǣstan, to turn, twist (see wrest),^[2][5] and probably to the base of writhe,^[4][6] from a root meaning “to turn”, so that the notion is “the turning joint”.^[3]

Earliest recorded meaning

The joint between the forearm and the hand, before 940.^[7][2]

Semantic evolution

The part of a sleeve or glove that covers the wrist is from 1803.^[7] In late Middle English wrist could also mean the joint of the knee or thigh (about 1450),^[7] and wrist of the foot, the ankle or instep, is from about 1530 and survived in dialect,^[7] recorded by Wright for Northumberland.^[8] Wristband is from 1571,^[2] wristlet from the 19th century,^[4] and wristwatch from 1896.^[2]

Timeline

• before 940 – the joint of the hand and forearm.^[7][2]
• c. 1530 – wrist of the foot, the ankle.^[7]
• 1571 – wristband.^[2]
• 1803 – the wrist of a sleeve.^[7]
• 1896 – wristwatch.^[2]

Modern meaning

Noun

1. The joint between the hand and the forearm; the carpus.
2. The part of a sleeve or glove that covers the wrist.
3. (machinery) A wrist pin, or a joint pivoting on one.

Word family

• wristwatch
• wristlet
• wristlock
• limp-wristed
• wristband
• wristy
• wrist pin
• wrist plate

Related words

• wrest
• writhe
• wrestle

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 f g h i j Barnhart, Robert K. (1988), The Barnhart Dictionary of Etymology
3. ^ a b c d Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
4. ^ a b c Hoad, T. F., ed. (1986), The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology, Oxford: Clarendon Press
5. ^ a b Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
6. ^ Pearsall, Judy, ed. (1998), The New Oxford Dictionary of English, Oxford: Clarendon Press
7. ^ 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
8. ^ 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)