caveat English · revision 1595

+ ==Pronunciation==

+ * IPA: /ˈkævɪæt/ ''(UK)''; /ˈkæviɑt/ ''(US)''^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Etymology==

+ It is [[bor|la|caveat|t=let him beware]],^(AHD)^(Barnhart 1995)^(Etymonline)^(MW Collegiate)^(RHWU) the third person singular present subjunctive of [[la|cavēre|t=to beware, take heed]].^(AHD)^(Barnhart 1995)^(Etymonline)^(RHWU) It first appeared in English in the legal phrase ''[[caveat emptor]]'' “let the buyer beware” (1523).^(Barnhart 1995)^(OED 1989)

+

+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==

+ A warning or caution (1549 in Barnhart;^(Barnhart 1995) 1550s in Etymonline;^(Etymonline) 1533 in Merriam-Webster).^(MW Collegiate)

+

+ ==Semantic evolution==

+ In law a caveat is a notice asking a court to suspend proceedings until the person giving it is heard,^(OED 1989)^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate) a sense attested from the 1650s.^(Etymonline)^(OED 1989) In general use the word moved from a warning to a qualification or proviso,^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate) and the verb “to qualify with a warning” is a modern development.^(AHD)^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Timeline==

+ * 1523 – ''caveat emptor''.^(Barnhart 1995)^(OED 1989)

+ * 1549 – a warning or caution.^(Barnhart 1995)

+ * 1557 – a warning or admonition.^(OED 1989)

+ * 1579 – a proviso or reservation, now obsolete.^(OED 1989)

+ * 1654 – a legal process to suspend proceedings.^(OED 1989)^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Modern meaning==

+ ===Noun===

+ # A warning or caution.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)^(RHWU)^(Wiktionary)

+ # A qualification or explanation added to prevent misunderstanding.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)^(Wiktionary)

+ # ''(law)'' A formal notice to a court asking it to suspend a proceeding until the person filing it is heard.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)^(RHWU)^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ===Verb===

+ # To qualify a statement with a warning or [[proviso]].^(AHD)^(Wiktionary)

+ # ''(law)'' To enter a caveat.^(AHD)^(OED 1989)^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Word family==

+ * [[caveator]]

+

+ ==Related words==

+ * [[caveat emptor]]

+ * [[caveat lector]]

+ * [[caution]]

+

+ ==Usage notes==

+ Wiktionary notes that the modern verb meaning “to qualify with a proviso” is often considered awkward or improper.^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==References==

+ {{reflist}}