traicionar

Forms

traicionar (first-person singular present traiciono, first-person singular preterite traicioné, past participle traicionado)^[1]

Etymology

It is formed from Spanish traición + -ar.^[1][2] Corominas dates it 1855, and Boyd-Bowman has it already in 1814, in Uruguay.^[2][3] traición, recorded from about 1140, is from Latin trāditiō (“a handing over; betrayal”), from trādō (“to hand over”).^[2][4] traidor goes back to the Latin agent noun trāditor of the same verb.^[2]

Earliest recorded meaning

Boyd-Bowman's first record is from Uruguay in 1814: ha traycionado a la patria “he has betrayed the fatherland”; the next, from Mexico in 1855, has traicionarán a sus deberes “they will betray their duties”.^[3]

Semantic evolution

Baralt, in 1855, noted that some writers used traicionar for hacer traición “to commit treason”.^[5] He granted that a single verb was needed and called it easily formed, like ambicionar from ambición, but suggested reviving the older tradir, which matched French trahir and Italian tradire.^[5] In the mid-19th century the verb was felt as an Americanism: Salvá in 1846 marks it as American, intransitive, “to commit treason, to fail one's duty treacherously”, and Barcia and Echegaray still call it an American intransitive verb.^[6][7][8] The Academy admitted it in 1884 as a transitive verb, “to commit treason”, and in 1899 added “against a person or thing”.^[9][10]

The modern dictionaries add figurative senses: memory, nerves or health can fail someone, a gesture or an accent can give away what a person wants to hide, and the reflexive traicionarse is to reveal one's thoughts without meaning to.^[11][12][13]

Timeline

• 1814 – the first record, from Uruguay.^[3]
• 1846 – Salvá's dictionary lists it as an American verb.^[6]
• 1855 – Baralt discusses the verb and it is recorded in Mexico, the year Corominas gives for its first record.^[2][5][3]
• 1884 – first in the Academy's dictionary.^[9]
• 1899 – the Academy defines it as committing treason against a person or thing.^[10]

Meanings

Verb

1. (transitive) To betray; to commit treason against a person, a country or a cause: Traicionó a sus compañeros por dinero.^[11][1][13]
2. (transitive) To fail or let down someone: En el último momento le traicionó la memoria.^[11][12]
3. (transitive) Of something done or said: to give away the real intention or feeling of the person: Su voz temblorosa la traicionaba.^[11][1]
4. (reflexive) To reveal unintentionally what one wants to hide: Prefirió callar para no traicionarse.^[11]

Related words

• traicionero
• traidor
• traición
• tradición

References

1. ^ a b c d e Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e Corominas, Joan (1973), Breve diccionario etimológico de la lengua castellana, 3rd ed., Madrid: Gredos, p. s.v. traición
3. ^ a b c d Boyd-Bowman, Peter (2003), Léxico hispanoamericano 1493–1993, ed. Ray Harris-Northall and John J. Nitti, New York: Hispanic Seminary of Medieval Studies, p. s.v. traicionar
4. ^ Real Academia Española; Asociación de Academias de la Lengua Española (2014–), Diccionario de la lengua española, 23rd ed., online version 23.8, https://dle.rae.es, p. s.v. traición
5. ^ a b c Baralt, Rafael María (1855), Diccionario de galicismos, Madrid: Imprenta de J. Cruzado, p. 698
6. ^ a b Salvá, Vicente (1846), Nuevo diccionario de la lengua castellana, París: Librería de Don Vicente Salvá, p. 1065
7. ^ Barcia, Roque (1880–1883), Primer diccionario general etimológico de la lengua española, 5 vols., Madrid: Establecimiento Tipográfico de Álvarez Hermanos, p. 184
8. ^ Echegaray, Eduardo de (1887–1889), Diccionario general etimológico de la lengua española, 5 vols., Madrid: José María Faquineto, p. 547
9. ^ a b Real Academia Española (1884), Diccionario de la lengua castellana, 12th ed., Madrid: Imprenta de D. Gregorio Hernando (the first Academy edition with etymologies), p. 1040
10. ^ a b Real Academia Española (1899), Diccionario de la lengua castellana, 13th ed., Madrid: Imprenta de los Sres. Hernando y Compañía, p. 974
11. ^ a b c d e Real Academia Española; Asociación de Academias de la Lengua Española (2014–), Diccionario de la lengua española, 23rd ed., online version 23.8, https://dle.rae.es, p. s.v. traicionar
12. ^ a b Moliner, María (2007), Diccionario de uso del español, 3rd ed., Madrid: Gredos, p. s.v. traicionar
13. ^ a b Battaner Arias, Paz (dir.) (2017), Diccionario general de la lengua española VOX, Barcelona: Larousse Editorial, p. s.v. traicionar