push English · revision 2993

+ {{infobox|confidence=established|formation=borrowing|attested=c. 1300|origins=la pulsō}}

+

+ ==Pronunciation==

+ * IPA: /pʊʃ/^(Roach et al. 2011)

+

+ ==Etymology==

+ It is [[inh|enm|pushen]], earlier possen,^(Barnhart 1988) [[bor|fro|poulser]], modern French pousser,^(Etymonline)^(Barnhart 1988) from [[la|pulsāre|t=to beat, strike, push]],^(Etymonline)^(Barnhart 1988) a frequentative of [[m|la|pellere|t=to push, drive, beat]], past participle pulsus,^(Etymonline)^(Barnhart 1988)^(MWU 2024) which Watkins derives from [[ine-pro|*pel-|t=to thrust, strike, drive]].^(Etymonline) It is a doublet of [[pulsate]].^(Barnhart 1988) For the sound -sh- from -s-, the OED compares [[brush]] and [[quash]].^(Etymonline) The noun is from the verb.^(Etymonline)^(Hoad 1986)

+

+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==

+ To shove, thrust: about 1300 in Etymonline,^(Etymonline) and about 1325 in Barnhart, with possen in ''King Horn'' earlier.^(Barnhart 1988)

+

+ ==Semantic evolution==

+ The early sense was “to exert force on”, which led later to “to make a strenuous effort”.^(NODE 1998) “To urge, press” is from the 1580s,^(Etymonline) and “to promote by persistence”, as of goods, from 1714;^(Barnhart 1988)^(Etymonline) from it came “to peddle drugs illegally”.^(Barnhart 1988) The noun, a driving thrust, is from the 1560s,^(Etymonline) a vigorous attempt from the 1590s,^(Etymonline)^(OED 1989) and a determined advance from 1803.^(OED 1989)^(Etymonline) Persevering enterprise, a determination to get on, is by 1855.^(Etymonline) ''To give someone the push'', “to dismiss”, is from 1899,^(OED 1989) ''push one's luck'' from 1754, ''push someone around'' by 1923,^(Etymonline) ''when push comes to shove'' by 1936,^(Etymonline) and ''push the envelope'' from the late 1980s.^(Etymonline) “To approach an age”, as in ''pushing fifty'', is from 1937.^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Timeline==

+ * c. 1300 – to shove.^(Etymonline)

+ * 1560s – noun, a thrust.^(Etymonline)

+ * 1580s – to urge.^(Etymonline)

+ * 1590s – a vigorous attempt.^(Etymonline)

+ * 1714 – to promote.^(Barnhart 1988)^(Etymonline)

+ * 1803 – a determined advance.^(OED 1989)

+ * 1899 – ''give the push''.^(OED 1989)

+ * 1936 – ''when push comes to shove''.^(Etymonline)

+ * 1937 – to approach an age.^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Modern meaning==

+ ===Verb===

+ # To press against something so as to move it away; to [[shove]].^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)

+ # To make one's way by force: ''push through the crowd''.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)

+ # To urge or [[pressure]] someone to act.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)

+ # To promote or try to sell; to sell [[illegal]] drugs.^(AHD)^(Barnhart 1988)

+ # To press a button or key.^(AHD)

+

+ ===Noun===

+ # An act of pushing; a shove.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)

+ # A vigorous effort or advance: ''a final push''.^(AHD)^(Etymonline)

+ # ''(informal)'' Dismissal: ''give someone the push''.^(OED 1989)^(Collins 2023)

+

+ ==Word family==

+ * [[outpush]]

+ * [[unpushed]]

+ * [[pushback]]

+ * [[pushball]]

+ * [[push-bike]]

+ * [[push-button]]

+ * [[pushcard]]

+ * [[pushcart]]

+

+ ==Related words==

+ * [[pedal pushers]]

+ * [[pulse]]

+ * [[pulsate]]

+ * [[repulse]]

+ * [[compel]]

+ * [[expel]]

+ * [[propel]]

+ * [[appeal]]

+

+ ==Usage notes==

+ A Middle English noun ''push'', “a pimple, boil” (1533), probably came from ''pus'' under the influence of ''push'',^(Etymonline)^(OED 1989) and survived in dialect.^(Wright 1898)

+

+ ==References==

+ {{reflist}}