maple English · revision 15405

+ {{infobox|confidence=established|formation=inherited|attested=770|origins=gem-pro *maplō}}

+

+ ==Pronunciation==

+ * IPA: /ˈmeɪpl̩/ ''(UK)''; /ˈmeɪp(ə)l/ ''(US)''^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Etymology==

+ It is [[inh|enm|mapel]], [[inh|ang|mapul-]], found in [[m|ang|mapultrēow|t=maple tree]] and [[m|ang|mapuldur]],^(Barnhart 1988)^(Etymonline)^(Hoad 1986)^(NODE 1998) from [[gem-pro|*maplō]],^(Etymonline) cognate with [[non|mǫpurr]], [[osx|mapulder]] and [[gml|mapeldorn]].^(Barnhart 1988)^(Etymonline)^(MWU 2024) There was also a Proto-Germanic [[m|gem-pro|*matlō]], the source of [[goh|mazzaltra]], but the connection and origins are mysterious.^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==

+ The tree, in Old English compounds: 770 in the OED, 774 (mapultrēo) in Barnhart, mapuldur about 700.^(OED 1989)^(Barnhart 1988) The word used on its own is first recorded in the 14th century,^(Hoad 1986)^(NODE 1998) probably before 1300 (mapel) in Barnhart.^(Barnhart 1988)

+

+ ==Semantic evolution==

+ The wood of the maple is from 1396–7,^(OED 1989) and named species, such as the bird's-eye maple, from 1597.^(OED 1989) The forms in ''-le'' are from about 1400.^(Etymonline) The trees are valued for their wood, for their sugar, and as shade or ornamental trees.^(Etymonline) Maple as a colour is from 1853.^(OED 1989)

+

+ ==Timeline==

+ * c. 700 – mapuldur.^(Barnhart 1988)

+ * 770 – maple tree (OED).^(OED 1989)

+ * probably before 1300 – mapel.^(Barnhart 1988)

+ * 1396–7 – maple wood.^(OED 1989)

+ * 1853 – maple, the colour.^(OED 1989)

+

+ ==Modern meaning==

+ ===Noun===

+ # A tree or shrub of the genus ''Acer'', with lobed leaves and winged seeds borne in pairs.^(AHD)^(Collins 2023)

+ # The hard, close-grained wood of these trees, used for furniture and floors.^(AHD)^(Collins 2023)

+ # The flavour of the sap of the [[sugar maple]]; [[maple syrup]].^(Collins 2023)

+

+ ==Word family==

+ * [[maplelike]]

+ * [[bird's-eye maple]]

+ * [[maple honey]]

+ * [[maple leaf]]

+

+ ==Related words==

+ * [[sycamore]]

+ * [[acer]]

+

+ ==Usage notes==

+ In south Cumberland, maple meant the sycamore.^(Wright 1898)

+

+ ==References==

+ {{reflist}}