dudgeon English · revision 2056

+ ==Pronunciation==

+ * IPA: /ˈdʌd͡ʒən/^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Etymology==

+ The origin is unknown.^(AHD)^(Barnhart 1995)^(Etymonline)^(MW Collegiate)^(RHWU) It was first spelled ''duggin''.^(Barnhart 1995)^(Etymonline) Etymonline mentions a suggestion that it comes from Italian ''aduggiare'' “to overshadow”, which would parallel [[umbrage]];^(Etymonline) a Welsh source has also been proposed but is rejected by the OED.^(Etymonline) There is no clear link to the older word ''dudgeon'', a kind of wood used for knife and dagger handles.^(Etymonline)^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)

+

+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==

+ A feeling of anger, resentment or offence, almost always in the phrase ''in dudgeon'' (1573).^(OED 1989)^(Barnhart 1995)^(MW Collegiate)^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Semantic evolution==

+ From the start the word was used mainly in set phrases, especially ''in high dudgeon'',^(OED 1989)^(Barnhart 1995)^(Wiktionary) and it still carries a note of offended, sullen indignation.^(AHD)^(Wiktionary) An adjective meaning “resentful” (1589) is obsolete.^(OED 1989) The unrelated ''dudgeon'' of the 15th century named a wood, perhaps boxwood, used for dagger hilts, and then the dagger itself.^(MW Collegiate)^(OED 1989)^(AHD)

+

+ ==Timeline==

+ * 15th century – ''dudgeon'', a wood for dagger hilts (separate word).^(MW Collegiate)

+ * 1573 – anger, resentment.^(OED 1989)^(Barnhart 1995)^(MW Collegiate)

+ * 1589 – adjective, resentful (obsolete).^(OED 1989)

+ * 1859 – verb, to be in dudgeon (rare).^(OED 1989)

+

+ ==Modern meaning==

+ ===Noun===

+ # A state of sullen anger or resentment, especially in the phrase ''in high dudgeon''.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)^(RHWU)^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Related words==

+ * [[umbrage]]

+ * [[pique]]

+

+ ==References==

+ {{reflist}}