agency English · revision 2720

+ {{infobox|confidence=established|formation=borrowing|attested=1658|origins=la agō}}

+

+ ==Pronunciation==

+ * IPA: /ˈeɪ.dʒən.si/^(Roach et al. 2011)

+

+ ==Etymology==

+ It is [[bor|la-med|agentia]],^(Barnhart 1988)^(Etymonline)^(SOED 2002) from [[la|agēns|t=effective, powerful]] (accusative agentem), the present participle of [[m|la|agere|t=to set in motion, drive; to do, perform]],^(Etymonline)^(Barnhart 1988) from [[ine-pro|*h₂eǵ-|alt=*ag-|t=to drive, draw out, move]],^(Etymonline) with the suffix [[-ency]].^(Barnhart 1988) Merriam-Webster takes it from [[agent]] and ''-ency'', perhaps after Medieval Latin.^(MWU 2024) French agence is recorded from 1653, and Barnhart notes that the word was “in the air” in mid-17th-century Europe, so that its exact route cannot be traced.^(Barnhart 1988)

+

+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==

+ Active operation, the faculty of acting: 1658 in the OED and Barnhart,^(OED 1989)^(Barnhart 1988) the 1650s in Etymonline.^(Etymonline) Merriam-Webster dates the word to 1600.^(MWU 2024)

+

+ ==Semantic evolution==

+ Working as a means to an end, instrumentality, is from 1674,^(OED 1989) the 1670s in Etymonline.^(Etymonline) The office or function of an agent in business is from before 1745,^(OED 1989) and the office of a US Indian agent from 1707.^(OED 1989) An establishment doing business for others, such as an advertising or travel agency, is by 1861,^(Etymonline)^(OED 1989) and an administrative body of a government, such as a federal agency, is a later sense.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)

+

+ ==Timeline==

+ * 1658 – active operation.^(OED 1989)^(Barnhart 1988)

+ * 1674 – instrumentality.^(OED 1989)

+ * 1707 – an Indian agency.^(OED 1989)

+ * before 1745 – the office of an agent.^(OED 1989)

+ * 1861 – a business acting for others.^(Etymonline)^(OED 1989)

+

+ ==Modern meaning==

+ ===Noun===

+ # A business that acts for others: ''a travel agency''.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)

+ # An administrative department of a [[government]] or international body.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)

+ # Action or operation; the means by which something is done; [[instrumentality]].^(AHD)^(OED 1989)

+ # The office or function of an [[agent]].^(AHD)^(OED 1989)

+

+ ==Related words==

+ * [[act]]

+ * [[action]]

+ * [[agent]]

+ * [[agenda]]

+ * [[agile]]

+ * [[agitate]]

+

+ ==References==

+ {{reflist}}