digital English · revision 3001

15 Oct 2026, 19:27 by bogdan “en10k lines 959-968 (twitter … benefit)” current version
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+ {{infobox|confidence=established|formation=borrowing|attested=c. 1430|origins=la digitus}}
+ 
+ ==Pronunciation==
+ * IPA: UK /ˈdɪdʒ.ɪ.tᵊl/, US /ˈdɪdʒ.ɪ.t̬ᵊl/^(Roach et al. 2011)
+ 
+ ==Etymology==
+ It is [[bor|la|digitālis|t=of a finger]],^(Etymonline)^(MWU 2024)^(NODE 1998) from [[m|la|digitus|t=finger, toe]],^(Etymonline)^(NODE 1998) the source of [[digit]].^(Etymonline)
+ 
+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==
+ Of numbers below ten: the mid-15th century,^(Etymonline) and about 1430 in the OED as a noun, a digit.^(OED 1989) The numerical sense came from counting numbers under ten on the fingers.^(Etymonline)
+ 
+ ==Semantic evolution==
+ “Of the fingers” is from 1656,^(OED 1989) the 1650s in Etymonline,^(Etymonline) and in anatomy, of marks resembling a fingerprint, from 1831.^(OED 1989) Humorously, ''digitals'' were fingers from 1840.^(OED 1989) The modern sense, “using numerical digits”, is from 1938, especially of computers that work with data in digits rather than analogue quantities, after about 1945.^(Etymonline)^(OED 1989) Digital recording and broadcasting are from 1960,^(Etymonline)^(OED 1989) and the ''digital audio tape'' from 1981.^(OED 1989)
+ 
+ ==Timeline==
+ * c. 1430 – a digit, a number under ten.^(OED 1989)
+ * 1656 – of the fingers.^(OED 1989)
+ * 1840 – noun, a finger (humorous).^(OED 1989)
+ * 1938 – using numerical digits.^(Etymonline)^(OED 1989)
+ * c. 1945 – of computers.^(Etymonline)
+ * 1960 – digital recording.^(Etymonline)^(OED 1989)
+ 
+ ==Modern meaning==
+ ===Adjective===
+ # Representing data as numbers, especially as a series of [[binary]] digits, for use by a [[computer]].^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)
+ # Using or showing a reading in numerical digits: ''a digital clock''.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)
+ # Of or done with the fingers.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)
+ # Relating to computer technology and the internet: ''the digital economy''.^(Collins 2023)
+ 
+ ===Noun===
+ # A key played with the finger, as on a piano.^(AHD)
+ 
+ ==Word family==
+ * [[digitally]]
+ 
+ ==Related words==
+ * [[digitalis]]
+ * [[digitate]]
+ * [[digitigrade]]
+ * [[digit]]
+ * [[digitize]]
+ * [[prestidigitation]]
+ 
+ ==References==
+ {{reflist}}