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abrasio

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Etymology and origin of the Latin word abrasio

Confidence
Established
Formation
Derivation
First attested
1085–1105 Hariulf, Chronicle of Saint-Riquier More words from the 11th century
Ultimate origin
Latin abrādō
Etymology tree
inherited borrowed derived
Latin rādō
Latin abrādō
English abrade
Latin abrāsiō
English abrasion
From the same root
Latin corrādō ← rādō
Latin ērādō ← rādō
Latin rāsōrium ← rādō
Latin rāstrum ← rādō
Latin rāsus ← rādō

Pronunciation

  • Classical: [abˈraː.si.oː][1]
  • Ecclesiastical: [abˈraː.s̬i.o][1]

Forms

abrāsiō f (genitive abrāsiōnis); third declension[1]

Etymology

It is formed from Latin abrādō (“to scrape off, shave”) + -tiō.[1][2] The verb is from ab (“from, away”) and rādō (“to scrape, shave”).[1]

Earliest recorded meaning

A sermon on contempt for the world attributed to Augustine uses it of shaving off the hair of the head.[3][4] The first dated use is in Hariulf's chronicle of Saint-Riquier, where shavings of hair and beard were found.[5][6]

Semantic evolution

Conte counts it as Late Latin.[2] In Medieval Latin it meant shaving and scraping off, and in surgery the scraping of a bone or of the skin:[5][7] Glanvill counts the thinning of the skull by abrasion among maimings, and medical writers prescribe rubbing and scraping for skin diseases.[7][5] The MLW also records the shavings themselves and, in a charter, the taking away of property from a church,[5] and the DMLBS an erasure in a document.[7]

English abrasion (1650s) comes from it.[8]

Timeline

  • 1085–1105 – Hariulf's chronicle mentions shavings of hair and beard.[5][6]
  • early 13th century – A charter of Würzburg uses it for the removal of property from a church.[5]
  • 1650s – English borrows it as abrasion.[8]

Meanings

Noun

  1. (Late Latin) The shaving off of hair.[3][4][5][7]
  2. (Medieval Latin) A scraping off; abrasion of the skin or a bone.[5][7]
  3. (Medieval Latin) Shavings, clippings.[5]
  4. (Medieval Latin) Removal, taking away (of property).[5]
  5. (Medieval Latin) An erasure in a document.[7]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b Conte, Gian Biagio; Pianezzola, Emilio; Ranucci, Giuliano (2010), il Latino: Vocabolario della lingua latina, 3rd ed., Florence: Le Monnier
  3. ^ a b Thesaurus linguae Latinae (1900–), Leipzig: Teubner; Berlin: De Gruyter; open-access ed., Munich: Bayerische Akademie der Wissenschaften
  4. ^ a b Georges, Karl Ernst (1913–1918), Ausführliches lateinisch-deutsches Handwörterbuch, 8th ed., ed. Heinrich Georges, Hannover; Leipzig: Hahn
  5. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Mittellateinisches Wörterbuch bis zum ausgehenden 13. Jahrhundert (1967–), Munich: C. H. Beck; Bayerische Akademie der Wissenschaften
  6. ^ a b Köbler, Gerhard (2010), Lateinisches Abkunfts- und Wirkungswörterbuch für Altertum und Mittelalter, online ed., koeblergerhard.de
  7. ^ a b c d e f Latham, R. E., D. R. Howlett, R. K. Ashdowne, et al. (1975–2013), Dictionary of Medieval Latin from British Sources, London: British Academy / Oxford University Press
  8. ^ a b Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
Cite this entry

“Abrasio.” Etymologically, 7 Nov. 2026, etymologically.com/la/abrasio. Accessed 8 Nov. 2026.

Last edited on . ·