spirit English · revision 2940

+ {{infobox|confidence=established|formation=borrowing|attested=c. 1250|origins=la spīrō}}

+

+ ==Pronunciation==

+ * IPA: /ˈspɪr.ɪt/^(Roach et al. 2011)

+

+ ==Etymology==

+ It is [[inh|enm|spirit]],^(MWU 2024) [[bor|xno|spirit]], Old French espirit,^(Etymonline)^(Barnhart 1988) and directly [[der|la|spīritus|t=breathing, breath; life, soul, courage]],^(Etymonline)^(Barnhart 1988)^(Hoad 1986) from [[m|la|spīrāre|t=to breathe]].^(Etymonline)^(Barnhart 1988)^(Cresswell 2021) The Latin verb was once traced to a root *(s)peis- “to blow”,^(Etymonline) and Barnhart and Merriam-Webster compare Old Church Slavonic piskati “to play a pipe”;^(Barnhart 1988)^(MWU 2024) de Vaan, quoted by Etymonline, thinks it may imitate the sound of breathing, with no direct cognates.^(Etymonline) The verb is from the noun.^(Etymonline)^(Barnhart 1988)

+

+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==

+ The animating or vital principle, the breath of life: about 1250, in the Middle English ''Genesis and Exodus'',^(Barnhart 1988)^(OED 1989) and the mid-13th century in Etymonline.^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Semantic evolution==

+ Latin spiritus was the word Christian writers used to translate the Greek and Hebrew words for the spirit of God.^(Barnhart 1988) In English the senses “divine substance, God; the Holy Ghost”, “the soul as the seat of morality” and “inspiration” are from the late 14th century,^(Etymonline) and a supernatural incorporeal being, such as an angel or demon, from the mid-14th century.^(Etymonline)^(Barnhart 1988) The disembodied soul of a dead person, a ghost, is from 1375.^(OED 1989) The activating principle of an emotion or attitude, as in “the spirit of independence”, is from before 1382, in Wycliffe.^(Barnhart 1988) Liveliness and courage are from 1588.^(Barnhart 1988) Alchemists used ''spirit'' of four substances and then of liquid essences,^(Hoad 1986) which led to “a solution of a volatile substance” in Ben Jonson's ''The Alchemist'' (1610) and strong alcoholic liquor in Bunyan's ''Pilgrim's Progress'' (1678–84).^(Barnhart 1988)^(Cresswell 2021) The verb meant “to make more lively” in Shakespeare's ''Henry V'' (1599),^(Barnhart 1988)^(OED 1989) “to animate, encourage” from 1608,^(Barnhart 1988)^(OED 1989) and “to carry off secretly”, as if by supernatural means, from 1666,^(Barnhart 1988) used especially of kidnapping people for the American colonies.^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Timeline==

+ * c. 1250 – the breath of life.^(Barnhart 1988)^(OED 1989)

+ * mid-14th century – a supernatural being.^(Etymonline)

+ * 1375 – the soul of a dead person.^(OED 1989)

+ * before 1382 – the essential principle of something.^(Barnhart 1988)

+ * 1588 – liveliness, courage.^(Barnhart 1988)

+ * 1599 – verb, to make lively.^(Barnhart 1988)^(OED 1989)

+ * 1610 – an alcoholic solution.^(Barnhart 1988)

+ * 1666 – verb, to carry off secretly.^(Barnhart 1988)

+ * 1678 – strong liquor.^(Barnhart 1988)

+ * 1852 – ''spirit-rapping''.^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Modern meaning==

+ ===Noun===

+ # The vital principle or animating force within living beings; the [[soul]].^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)

+ # A supernatural being, such as a [[ghost]], an [[angel]] or a [[demon]].^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)

+ # ''Spirit'': the [[Holy Spirit]].^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)

+ # Mood or disposition: ''in high spirits''.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)

+ # Liveliness, energy or courage.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)

+ # The real meaning or intent of something, as opposed to its letter: ''the spirit of the law''.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)

+ # Strong [[distill|alt=distilled]] alcoholic drink; an alcoholic solution of a volatile substance.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)

+

+ ===Verb===

+ # To carry off secretly or mysteriously.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)

+ # To fill with courage or animation.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)

+

+ ==Word family==

+ * [[spiritlike]]

+ * [[nonspirit]]

+ * [[spiritism]]

+ * [[dispirit]]

+ * [[spirited]]

+ * [[spiritless]]

+ * [[spiritous]]

+ * [[spiritual]]

+

+ ==Related words==

+ * [[inspire]]

+ * [[conspire]]

+ * [[expire]]

+ * [[respire]]

+ * [[esprit]]

+ * [[sprite]]

+

+ ==Usage notes==

+ In Devon dialect ''spirit'' was a term of contempt or abuse.^(Wright 1898)

+

+ ==References==

+ {{reflist}}