ground English · revision 3479

+ {{infobox|confidence=established|formation=inherited|attested=c. 725 (Beowulf)|origins=gem-pro *grunduz}}

+

+ ==Pronunciation==

+ * IPA: /ɡraʊnd/^(Roach et al. 2011)

+

+ ==Etymology==

+ It is [[inh|enm|grund]], [[inh|ang|grund|t=bottom, foundation; surface of the earth]],^(Etymonline)^(Barnhart 1988)^(MW Collegiate) from [[gem-pro|*grunduz]],^(Hoad 1986) which seems to have meant “deep place”.^(Etymonline) Its cognates include [[ofs|grund]], [[osx|grund]], [[nl|grond]], [[de|Grund]] and [[non|grunnr|t=bottom]],^(Etymonline)^(Barnhart 1988)^(SOED 2002) and Gothic has grundu- in grunduwaddjus “foundation wall”.^(Barnhart 1988)^(MWU 2024) The SOED and Etymonline know no cognates outside Germanic,^(SOED 2002)^(Etymonline) but Merriam-Webster compares Greek [[m|grc|χραίνω|tr=khraínō|t=to graze, touch slightly]] and perhaps Old English [[m|ang|grindan|t=to grind]].^(MWU 2024)

+

+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==

+ The bottom, foundation, or surface of the earth: Old English ''grund'', about 725, in ''Beowulf'',^(Barnhart 1988) and the bottom of the sea or a well about 825.^(OED 1989) Old English also used it for the abyss of Hell.^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Semantic evolution==

+ The bottom of the sea survives in ''run aground''.^(Etymonline) The sense “reason, motive” is from about 1200,^(Etymonline) and “source, cause” from about 1400.^(Etymonline) A specific area of land is from the 14th century, and the grounds of a building from the 15th.^(Hoad 1986) Dregs, ''grounds'', are from the 14th century.^(Hoad 1986) The place where one takes a stand is from the 1610s, hence ''stand one's ground'' from 1707.^(Etymonline) The electrical sense, a connection with the earth, is from 1870 in telegraphy.^(Etymonline) The verb meant “to strike to the ground” from the mid-13th century, and “to lay the foundation of; to instruct in the basics” from the late 14th.^(Etymonline)^(OED 1989) Ships ''ground'' from the mid-15th century,^(Etymonline) aircraft are ''grounded'' from 1930, and the punishment that denies privileges dates from the 1940s.^(Etymonline) ''Ground rule'' is from 1890.^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Timeline==

+ * c. 725 – Old English ''grund'' (''Beowulf'').^(Barnhart 1988)

+ * c. 1200 – a reason, motive.^(Etymonline)

+ * mid-13th century – verb, to put on the ground.^(Etymonline)

+ * late 14th century – verb, to instruct in the basics.^(Etymonline)

+ * 1610s – a position taken.^(Etymonline)

+ * 1870 – electrical earth.^(Etymonline)

+ * 1890 – ''ground rule''.^(Etymonline)

+ * 1930 – verb, to keep a pilot from flying.^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Modern meaning==

+ ===Noun===

+ # The solid surface of the earth; [[soil]].^(AHD)^(SOED 2002)

+ # An area of land used for a purpose: ''a football ground'', and ''grounds'', the land round a building.^(AHD)^(Hoad 1986)

+ # A position contested as in battle; a subject of discussion.^(AHD)^(Etymonline)

+ # A basis or reason: ''grounds for divorce''.^(AHD)^(Etymonline)

+ # A background, as in painting.^(AHD)

+ # ''grounds'': sediment, as of coffee.^(AHD)^(Hoad 1986)

+ # ''(US)'' An electrical connection to the earth.^(AHD)^(Etymonline)

+

+ ===Verb===

+ # To place on the ground; to run a ship aground.^(AHD)^(Etymonline)

+ # To provide a basis for; to instruct in fundamentals.^(AHD)^(OED 1989)

+ # To prevent from flying; to confine as a punishment.^(AHD)^(Etymonline)

+ # ''(US)'' To connect electrically to the earth.^(AHD)^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Word family==

+ * [[groundedness]]

+ * [[groundward]]

+ * [[unground]]

+ * [[ground glass]]

+

+ ==Related words==

+ * [[groin]]

+ * [[grounded]]

+ * [[groundless]]

+ * [[aground]]

+ * [[grind]]

+ * [[groundwork]]

+ * [[groundswell]]

+

+ ==Usage notes==

+ ''Ground'' as in ''ground coffee'', “reduced to fine particles”, is a different word, the past participle of [[grind]], used as an adjective from 1765.^(Etymonline)^(OED 1989)^(SOED 2002)

+

+ ==References==

+ {{reflist}}