buzz English · revision 10300

+ {{infobox|confidence=established|formation=onomatopoeia|attested=1495}}

+

+ ==Pronunciation==

+ * IPA: /bʌz/^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Etymology==

+ It is imitative of the sound made by bees and other insects.^(Barnhart 1988)^(Etymonline)^(Hoad 1986)^(NODE 1998) Barnhart records the verb as buss in 1530 and the verbal noun bussing in 1495;^(Barnhart 1988) Etymonline dates the verb to the late 15th century and buzzing to the late 14th.^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==

+ To make a humming sound like a bee: 1530 in Barnhart;^(Barnhart 1988) buzzing, the noun, 1495.^(Barnhart 1988)

+

+ ==Semantic evolution==

+ The noun meant a groundless fancy or whim in 1605, in Shakespeare's ''King Lear'',^(Barnhart 1988) a busy rumour in the 1620s (1627 in Barnhart, busy talk),^(Etymonline)^(Barnhart 1988) and a humming sound in the 1640s (1645).^(Etymonline)^(OED 1989) The buzz of a telephone is from 1913, and ''to give someone a buzz'', a phone call, by 1922;^(Etymonline)^(OED 1989) ''buzz off'', go away, is from 1914, from ringing off on the telephone.^(Etymonline) A pleasant feeling of intoxication is recorded by 1935,^(Etymonline) and of excitement from 1942.^(OED 1989) The characteristic sound of early aircraft gave the verb sense to fly swiftly by 1928, and to fly low over something as a warning by 1940–41.^(Etymonline)^(Barnhart 1988) The children's counting game buzz is from 1864,^(Etymonline)^(OED 1989) and the ''buzz bomb'', the V-1 rocket, from 1944.^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Timeline==

+ * 1495 – bussing.^(Barnhart 1988)

+ * 1530 – to hum like a bee.^(Barnhart 1988)

+ * 1605 – a whim (noun).^(Barnhart 1988)

+ * 1627 – busy talk.^(Barnhart 1988)

+ * 1645 – a humming sound.^(OED 1989)

+ * 1913 – a telephone buzz.^(OED 1989)

+ * 1935 – a pleasant intoxication.^(Etymonline)

+ * 1941 – to fly low over.^(Barnhart 1988)

+

+ ==Modern meaning==

+ ===Noun===

+ # A low vibrating or humming sound, as of a [[bee]].^(AHD)^(Collins 2023)

+ # A low murmur, as of many voices.^(AHD)^(Collins 2023)

+ # A rumour; gossip.^(Collins 2023)

+ # ''(informal)'' A telephone call.^(AHD)^(Collins 2023)

+ # ''(slang)'' A pleasant feeling of intoxication or excitement.^(AHD)^(Collins 2023)

+

+ ===Verb===

+ # To make a low droning or vibrating sound.^(AHD)^(Collins 2023)

+ # To talk excitedly in low tones; to be full of activity or talk.^(AHD)^(Collins 2023)

+ # To call or signal someone with a buzzer or telephone.^(AHD)

+ # To fly low over something in an aircraft.^(AHD)

+

+ ==Word family==

+ * [[buzzingly]]

+ * [[abuzz]]

+ * [[buzzword]]

+ * [[outbuzz]]

+ * [[buzz cut]]

+ * [[buzz saw]]

+ * [[buzz bomb]]

+

+ ==Related words==

+ * [[buzzer]]

+ * [[fuzz]]

+

+ ==Usage notes==

+ Buzz was also a dialect word for a bur, the prickly seed vessel of a plant.^(OED 1989)^(Wright 1898)

+

+ ==References==

+ {{reflist}}