conference English · revision 2642

+ {{infobox|confidence=established|formation=borrowing|attested=1527|origins=la ferre}}

+

+ ==Pronunciation==

+ * IPA: UK /ˈkɒn.fər.əns/, US /ˈkɑːn.fɚ.əns/^(Roach et al. 2011)

+

+ ==Etymology==

+ It is [[bor|frm|conférence]] or directly [[bor|la-med|conferentia]],^(Etymonline)^(MWU 2024)^(SOED 2002) from [[la|cōnferēns]], the present participle of [[m|la|cōnferre|t=to bring together; deliberate, talk over]],^(Etymonline)^(AHD 2000) from [[m|la|com-|t=together]] and [[m|la|ferre|t=to bear, carry]],^(Etymonline) from [[ine-pro|*bher-|t=to carry]].^(Etymonline) It is the noun of [[confer]].^(AHD 2000)^(SOED 2002)

+

+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==

+ 1527 according to Merriam-Webster, in the sense “comparison of texts”;^(MWU 2024) the OED dates this sense to 1538.^(OED 1989) Etymonline gives “the act of consulting together” from the 1550s (1555).^(Etymonline)^(OED 1989)

+

+ ==Semantic evolution==

+ Several early senses, “contribution, supply” (1545), “comparison, collation” (1538) and “talk, conversation” (1565), are obsolete.^(OED 1989) A formal meeting for consultation, as between representatives of governments, is from the 1580s (1586).^(Etymonline)^(OED 1989) In Methodist and other Protestant churches a conference is an assembly of clergy, or clergy and lay members, of a district.^(AHD) A trade association, especially of shipping companies, is from 1894.^(OED 1989) An association of sports teams that play each other is American usage.^(AHD) The verb is by 1846,^(Etymonline)^(OED 1989) and a telephone conference call from 1972.^(OED 1989) The ''Conference'' pear is apparently named after the National Pear Conference of 1885.^(COED 2004)

+

+ ==Timeline==

+ * 1527 – comparison of texts.^(MWU 2024)

+ * 1555 – the act of consulting together.^(OED 1989)

+ * 1586 – a formal meeting.^(OED 1989)

+ * 1846 – verb, to hold a conference.^(Etymonline)^(OED 1989)

+ * 1894 – a trade association.^(OED 1989)

+ * 1972 – a telephone conference.^(OED 1989)

+

+ ==Modern meaning==

+ ===Noun===

+ # A formal meeting for discussion or [[consultation]].^(AHD)^(SOED 2002)

+ # A large meeting, often lasting several days, of people with a shared interest: ''a medical conference''.^(AHD)

+ # An exchange of views.^(AHD)^(Etymonline)

+ # An association of sports teams that play each other.^(AHD)

+ # An assembly of members of a Protestant church from a district.^(AHD)

+

+ ===Verb===

+ # To take part in a conference, especially by telephone or video.^(OED 1989)^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Word family==

+ * [[conferential]]

+ * [[teleconference]]

+ * [[videoconference]]

+ * [[preconference]]

+ * [[subconference]]

+ * [[news conference]]

+ * [[press conference]]

+ * [[conference call]]

+

+ ==Related words==

+ * [[confer]]

+ * [[differ]]

+ * [[defer]]

+ * [[infer]]

+ * [[refer]]

+ * [[transfer]]

+ * [[offer]]

+ * [[bear]]

+

+ ==References==

+ {{reflist}}