broach English · revision 1605

+ ==Pronunciation==

+ * IPA: /bɹəʊtʃ/ ''(UK)''; /bɹoʊt͡ʃ/ ''(US)''^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Etymology==

+ The verb is [[inh|enm|brochen|t=to pierce]],^(AHD)^(Barnhart 1995)^(Etymonline)^(RHWU) from Middle English ''broche'' “pointed tool, spit”^(AHD)^(Barnhart 1995)^(MW Collegiate) and influenced by Old French ''brochier'' “to spur”.^(Barnhart 1995)^(Etymonline) The noun is [[der|fro|broche|t=spit, awl]],^(AHD)^(Barnhart 1995)^(Etymonline)^(MW Collegiate) [[der|la-vul|*brocca|t=pointed tool]],^(AHD)^(Barnhart 1995)^(Etymonline)^(MW Collegiate) from the feminine of [[la|broccus|t=projecting]],^(AHD)^(Barnhart 1995)^(Etymonline)^(MW Collegiate)^(RHWU) a word used especially of teeth^(Etymonline)^(RHWU) and perhaps of Gaulish origin.^(Barnhart 1995)^(Etymonline) The word [[brooch]] is a variant of the same noun.^(Barnhart 1995)^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)

+

+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==

+ The verb first meant to pierce or stab (1377) and to spur a horse (1330).^(OED 1989)^(Barnhart 1995)

+

+ ==Semantic evolution==

+ To broach a cask was to pierce it and draw off the liquor,^(OED 1989)^(Etymonline) and from the 1570s the verb was used figuratively of opening a subject for discussion.^(Etymonline)^(Barnhart 1995) Etymonline notes that both the cask and the older sense of spurring into action may lie behind this.^(Etymonline) The noun named many pointed tools, from a spit to a church spire,^(OED 1989) and in modern machining a tapered cutting tool for shaping holes.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)^(RHWU) A separate nautical verb, “to veer broadside to the waves”, is from 1705.^(OED 1989)^(MW Collegiate)

+

+ ==Timeline==

+ * about 1305 – noun, a pointed rod or skewer.^(OED 1989)^(Barnhart 1995)

+ * 1330 – verb, to spur a horse.^(OED 1989)

+ * 1377 – to pierce or stab, now obsolete.^(OED 1989)

+ * about 1440 – to pierce a cask so as to draw the liquor.^(OED 1989)

+ * 1501 – a church spire.^(OED 1989)

+ * 1570s – to begin to talk about a subject.^(Etymonline)^(Barnhart 1995)

+ * 1705 – nautical, to veer broadside to the waves.^(OED 1989)^(MW Collegiate)

+

+ ==Modern meaning==

+ ===Verb===

+ # To bring up a subject for discussion.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)^(RHWU)^(Wiktionary)

+ # To pierce a [[cask]] to draw off liquid; to [[tap]].^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)^(RHWU)^(Wiktionary)

+ # To shape or enlarge a hole with a broach.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)^(RHWU)

+ # ''(nautical)'' To veer or cause a ship to veer broadside to the wind and waves.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ===Noun===

+ # A tapered, toothed tool for shaping or enlarging holes.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)^(RHWU)

+ # A [[spit]] for roasting meat.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)^(RHWU)^(Wiktionary)

+ # A [[gimlet]] for tapping casks.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)^(RHWU)

+ # A variant spelling of [[brooch]].^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)^(RHWU)^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Word family==

+ * [[broacher]]

+ * [[abroach]]

+

+ ==Related words==

+ * [[brochure]]

+

+ ==Usage notes==

+ The American Heritage Dictionary groups ''broach'', ''introduce'', ''moot'' and ''raise'' as verbs meaning to bring a topic forward for discussion.^(AHD)

+

+ ==References==

+ {{reflist}}