street English · revision 2520

+ {{infobox|confidence=established|formation=borrowing|attested=c. 725, Beowulf (Old English strǣt)|origins=ine-pro *sterə-}}

+

+ ==Pronunciation==

+ * IPA: /striːt/^(Roach et al. 2011)

+

+ ==Etymology==

+ It is [[inh|enm|strete]], [[inh|ang|strǣt|t=paved road, highway, street]] (Mercian [[m|ang|strēt]]),^(Etymonline)^(Barnhart 1988)^(AHD 2000) [[bor|la-lat|strāta|t=paved road]], an early borrowing shared by other West Germanic languages,^(Etymonline)^(Barnhart 1988)^(MWU 2024) short for [[m|la|via strāta|t=paved way]], from the feminine past participle of [[m|la|sternere|t=to lay down, spread out, pave]],^(Etymonline)^(Barnhart 1988)^(AHD 2000) from [[ine-pro|*sterə-|t=to spread]].^(Etymonline)^(AHD 2000) Its relatives include [[de|Straße]] and [[nl|straat]], and Italian [[m|it|strada]] and Spanish [[m|es|estrada]] come from the same Latin word.^(Etymonline)^(Barnhart 1988) It is related to [[stratum]], [[strew]] and [[stray]].^(Barnhart 1988)^(Klein 1966)^(SOED 2002)

+

+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==

+ A paved road, a highway: Old English ''strǣt'', about 725, in ''Beowulf''.^(Barnhart 1988)

+

+ ==Semantic evolution==

+ Etymonline calls it one of the rare words used in England continuously since Roman times.^(Etymonline) In Old English it was the usual word for the Roman roads, as in ''Watling Street'' and ''Ermine Street'',^(Etymonline)^(Cresswell 2021) and as late as Coverdale's Bible it meant a road or causeway rather than a town street.^(Trench 1859) The town street also goes back to Anglo-Saxon times,^(Cresswell 2021) and Middle English used ''strete'' both for a road in a town and for a road between towns.^(Etymonline) The people of a street have been ''the street'' since the late 14th century.^(Etymonline) ''Streetwalker'' is from 1592, ''street lamp'' from 1799, the American ''streetcar'' from 1862, ''streetwise'' from 1965 and ''street people'' from 1967.^(Barnhart 1988) ''The man in the street'' is from the late 18th century,^(Cresswell 2021) and ''the street'' as the people as a political force from 1931.^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Timeline==

+ * c. 725 – Old English ''strǣt'' (''Beowulf'').^(Barnhart 1988)

+ * late 14th century – the people of a street.^(Etymonline)

+ * 1592 – ''streetwalker''.^(Barnhart 1988)

+ * late 18th century – ''the man in the street''.^(Cresswell 2021)

+ * 1862 – ''streetcar''.^(Barnhart 1988)

+ * 1931 – ''the street'', political opinion.^(Etymonline)

+ * 1965 – ''streetwise''.^(Barnhart 1988)

+

+ ==Modern meaning==

+ ===Noun===

+ # A public road in a town or city, usually with pavements and buildings along it.^(AHD)^(SOED 2002)

+ # The people who live or work in a street.^(AHD)^(Etymonline)

+ # ''(historical)'' A paved road; a Roman road.^(Etymonline)^(Trench 1859)

+ # The urban environment, especially of the poor or homeless: ''living on the street''.^(AHD)^(Barnhart 1988)

+

+ ===Adjective===

+ # Of, in or near the street: ''street theatre''.^(AHD)

+

+ ==Word family==

+ * [[streetless]]

+ * [[streetlike]]

+ * [[backstreet]]

+

+ ==Related words==

+ * [[stratum]]

+ * [[strew]]

+ * [[stray]]

+ * [[road]]

+

+ ==References==

+ {{reflist}}