shibboleth English · revision 1228

+ ==Pronunciation==

+ * IPA: /ˈʃɪbəlɛθ/, /ˈʃɪbələθ/^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Etymology==

+ It is [[bor|hbo|שִׁבֹּלֶת|tr=šibbōleṯ|t=stream, flood; ear of grain]].^(AHD)^(Barnhart 1995)^(Etymonline)^(MW Collegiate)^(RHWU) In Judges 12:4–6 the Gileadites used the word as a test to identify fleeing Ephraimites, who could not pronounce the ''sh'' sound and said ''sibboleth''.^(AHD)^(Barnhart 1995)^(Etymonline)^(MW Collegiate)^(RHWU)

+

+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==

+ The Hebrew test word itself, in the Wycliffite Bible (before 1382, as ''Sebolech'').^(Barnhart 1995)^(OED 1989)^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Semantic evolution==

+ From 1638 the word was used figuratively for a catchword or formula by which the members of a party or sect could be told apart.^(Barnhart 1995)^(MW Collegiate)^(OED 1989)^(Etymonline) It was then applied to any word that outsiders cannot pronounce correctly (1658), to a telltale feature of pronunciation (1663), and to customs or dress that mark a group (1806).^(OED 1989)^(Etymonline) By 1862 it could also mean an outmoded slogan still clung to,^(Etymonline) and Merriam-Webster gives a sense of a truism or platitude.^(MW Collegiate)

+

+ ==Timeline==

+ * before 1382 – ''Sebolech'', the biblical test word.^(Barnhart 1995)

+ * 1535 – ''Schiboleth''.^(Barnhart 1995)

+ * 1638 – catchword of a party or sect.^(Barnhart 1995)^(MW Collegiate)^(OED 1989)

+ * 1658 – a word used to detect outsiders.^(OED 1989)

+ * 1663 – a telltale peculiarity of pronunciation.^(OED 1989)

+ * 1806 – a custom or mode of dress that marks a group.^(OED 1989)

+ * 1862 – an outdated slogan still adhered to.^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Modern meaning==

+ ===Noun===

+ # A word, [[pronunciation]] or usage that distinguishes one group of people from another.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)^(RHWU)^(Wiktionary)

+ # A [[custom]] or practice that marks someone as an insider or an outsider.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)^(RHWU)^(OED 1989)

+ # A [[catchword]] or slogan associated with a party or cause, often regarded as empty.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)^(RHWU)^(Wiktionary)

+ # A commonplace belief or saying with little real meaning; a [[platitude]].^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)^(RHWU)^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Related words==

+ * [[password]]

+ * [[watchword]]

+ * [[catchword]]

+

+ ==References==

+ {{reflist}}