investment English · revision 2859

+ {{infobox|confidence=established|formation=derivation|attested=1597|origins=en invest}}

+

+ ==Pronunciation==

+ * IPA: /ɪnˈvest.mənt/^(Roach et al. 2011)

+

+ ==Etymology==

+ It is formed from [[invest]] and the suffix [[-ment]].^(Etymonline)^(MWU 2024)

+

+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==

+ The act of putting on vestments or clothing: 1597 in the OED and Merriam-Webster,^(OED 1989)^(MWU 2024) a sense now found in ''investiture''.^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Semantic evolution==

+ Being invested with an office or right is from 1649, the 1640s in Etymonline.^(OED 1989)^(Etymonline) An outer covering or coating is from 1646.^(OED 1989) The commercial sense began in 1615 in the East India trade, for spending money on goods to export,^(OED 1989)^(MWU 2024) and was first used of the East India Company.^(Etymonline) In general use, turning money into property in the hope of profit, it is from 1740,^(OED 1989)^(Etymonline) and an amount of money invested from 1837.^(OED 1989) The military sense, the surrounding and besieging of a town or fort, is from 1811.^(OED 1989)^(Etymonline) For the development of the commercial senses, Etymonline refers to the verb ''invest''.^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Timeline==

+ * 1597 – putting on clothes or vestments.^(OED 1989)^(MWU 2024)

+ * 1615 – the use of money in the East India trade.^(OED 1989)

+ * 1646 – an outer covering.^(OED 1989)

+ * 1649 – investiture with an office.^(OED 1989)

+ * 1740 – conversion of money into property for profit.^(OED 1989)^(Etymonline)

+ * 1811 – a military siege.^(OED 1989)^(Etymonline)

+ * 1837 – an amount invested.^(OED 1989)

+

+ ==Modern meaning==

+ ===Noun===

+ # The act of [[invest|alt=investing]] money for profit.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)

+ # An amount of money invested, or the property bought with it.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)

+ # A commitment, as of time or effort, made in the hope of a later benefit.^(AHD)

+ # ''(military)'' A [[siege]].^(AHD)^(OED 1989)

+ # ''(archaic)'' A garment or outer covering.^(AHD)^(OED 1989)

+

+ ==Word family==

+ * [[overinvestment]]

+ * [[proinvestment]]

+ * [[reinvestment]]

+ * [[underinvestment]]

+ * [[capital investment]]

+ * [[investment bank]]

+ * [[investment casting]]

+ * [[investment company]]

+

+ ==Related words==

+ * [[invest]]

+ * [[vest]]

+ * [[vestment]]

+ * [[investiture]]

+ * [[divest]]

+ * [[wear]]

+

+ ==References==

+ {{reflist}}