semear

Forms

semear (first-person singular present semeio, first-person singular preterite semeei, past participle semeado)^[1] Wiktionary gives the Old Galician-Portuguese forms semear and semẽar;^[1][2] Houaiss records semeam in 1365 and ssemeasse in the 14th century.^[1][2]

Etymology

It is inherited from Latin sēminō (“to sow; to produce”), written Old Galician-Portuguese semear in the oldest texts.^[2][3][4][1] The Latin verb is formed on sēmen (“seed”).^[1][5]

The same Latin verb is Galician semear, Spanish sembrar, Asturian semar, French semer, Italian seminare and Romanian semăna.^[6][7] Berceo has both semnar and the newer form with /b/, which soon became general.^[8] The DHLF notes that the Latin verb was rare in classical times, that the Romance verbs all come from it, and that its base noun comes from serō (“to sow, plant”).^[9]

The Latin noun goes back to *sēmn̥, from Proto-Indo-European *séh₁mn̥ (“seed”).^[1]

Earliest recorded meaning

Houaiss and Cunha date the verb to the 13th century.^[2][3] The first dated record is a document of 1286 about land em que semeem tres alqueires de lĩaça “in which three alqueires of linseed may be sown”.^[10] A cantiga of King Denis already uses it figuratively, da falssidade que semeastes “of the falsehood you have sown”.^[10]

Semantic evolution

Both the literal and the figurative senses are medieval: besides sowing grain and linseed, the troubadours speak of sowing falsehood, and Martin Moxa of semear o sal, sowing salt, as the very picture of an absurd task.^[10][11] Cardoso (1569) glosses the verb with both Latin semino and sero.^[12] Bluteau (1712) describes the sower taking a handful of wheat from the bag at his side and scattering it at each step.^[13] Later senses are “to scatter here and there, strew” and “to cause, stir up” (panic, discord).^[2][14]

Timeline

• 13th century – first records.^[2][3]
• 1286 – semeem in a document about sowing linseed.^[10]
• 1318 – se semeardes y hua teega de lignaça “if you sow there a teiga of linseed”.^[10]
• 1365 – the form semeam.^[2]
• 14th century – first record of the old synonym sementar.^[3]
• 16th century – first record of semeador “sower”.^[3]
• 1569 – Cardoso glosses it with Latin semino and sero.^[12]
• 1712 – Bluteau describes the sower at work.^[13]
• 1874 – first record of semeação.^[3]

Meanings

Verb

1. To sow: to put seed in the ground so that it will grow: Semeou feijão na horta.^[2][14][1]
2. To sow (a field), spread seed over: semear um canteiro.^[2][14]
3. (figurative) To prepare the ground for future results: Quem semeia agora colhe depois.^[2]
4. To scatter, strew here and there: semear um texto de citações.^[2][15]
5. (figurative) To spread (ideas, news), disseminate.^[2][14]
6. (figurative) To cause, stir up: semear o pânico, semear a discórdia.^[2][14]

Word family

• semeador
• semeação
• ressemear

Related words

• semente
• sementeira
• sementar
• sêmen
• seminal
• seminário
• disseminar
• Latin sēminō
• Spanish sembrar

Usage notes

Mão de semear is a name for the right hand.^[15]

References

1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m Houaiss, Antônio; Villar, Mauro de Salles (2001), Dicionário Houaiss da língua portuguesa, Rio de Janeiro: Objetiva, p. s.v. semear
3. ^ a b c d e f Cunha, Antônio Geraldo da (2010), Dicionário etimológico da língua portuguesa, 4th ed., Rio de Janeiro: Lexikon, p. s.v. semear
4. ^ Nascentes, Antenor (1966), Dicionário etimológico resumido, Rio de Janeiro: Instituto Nacional do Livro, p. s.v. semear
5. ^ Glare, P. G. W., ed. (2012), Oxford Latin Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press, p. s.v. sēminō
6. ^ Meyer-Lübke, Wilhelm (1935), Romanisches etymologisches Wörterbuch, 3rd ed., Heidelberg: Winter, p. 7807
7. ^ García de Diego, Vicente (1985), Diccionario etimológico español e hispánico, 2nd ed., Madrid: Espasa-Calpe (1st ed. 1954), p. s.v. seminare
8. ^ Corominas, Joan; Pascual, José A. (1980–1991), Diccionario crítico etimológico castellano e hispánico, 6 vols., Madrid: Gredos, p. 5, 197
9. ^ Rey, Alain, ed. (1992), Dictionnaire historique de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert, p. s.v. semer
10. ^ a b c d e Instituto da Lingua Galega, Dicionario de dicionarios do galego medieval (DDGM), ed. Ernesto González Seoane, Santiago de Compostela: Universidade de Santiago de Compostela, https://ilg.usc.gal/ddgm, p. s.v. semear
11. ^ Universo Cantigas: Glosario da poesía medieval profana galego-portuguesa, A Coruña: Instituto da Lingua e Literatura (ILLA), Universidade da Coruña, https://www.universocantigas.gal, p. s.v. semear
12. ^ a b Cardoso, Jerónimo (1569–1570), Dictionarium ex lusitanico in latinum sermonem, Lisboa: João Álvares (CLP transcription, Universidade de Aveiro), p. s.v. semear
13. ^ a b Bluteau, Raphael (1712–1728), Vocabulario portuguez e latino, 8 vols. + 2 supplement vols., Coimbra / Lisboa (CLP transcription, Universidade de Aveiro), p. s.v. semear
14. ^ a b c d e Ferreira, Aurélio Buarque de Holanda, Novo dicionário Aurélio da língua portuguesa, digital edition, p. s.v. semear
15. ^ a b Dicionário Priberam da Língua Portuguesa, Lisboa: Priberam Informática, https://dicionario.priberam.org, p. s.v. semear