spielen German · revision 34931

+ {{infobox|confidence=established|formation=inherited|attested=8th century, Old High German|origins=gmw-pro *spil}}

+

+ ==Pronunciation==

+ * /ˈʃpiːlən/^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Forms==

+ '''spielen''' (third-person singular present spielt, past tense spielte, past participle gespielt, auxiliary haben)^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Etymology==

+ It is [[inh|gmh|spiln]], [[inh|goh|spilōn]], [[inh|gmw-pro|*spilōn|t=to play, to dance]], a verb formed from the noun [[gmw-pro|*spil|t=game, play, dance]], which became [[Spiel]].^(Kluge 2011|867)^(Pfeifer 1993)^(Wiktionary) The same verb is [[osx|spilon]], [[ofs|spilia]], [[gml|spēlen]] and [[dum|spēlen]], today [[nl|spelen]].^(Kluge 2011|867)^(Pfeifer 1993)

+

+ The noun and the verb are recorded only in continental West Germanic;^(Pfeifer 1993) Pfeifer considers [[ang|spilian]], [[sv|spela]] and [[da|spille]] borrowings, and the Grimms' dictionary takes the late Icelandic [[m|is|spila]] of the 14th century to be a loan from German.^(Pfeifer 1993)^(DWB|16, 2325) The origin of the word is unknown.^(Pfeifer 1993)^(Duden 7 2007)^(Kluge 2011|867) Kluge, Pfeifer and the Duden reckon that it first meant “to dance, to move about lively”.^(Kluge 2011|867)^(Pfeifer 1993)^(Duden GWDS 1999)

+

+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==

+ Old High German ''spilōn'' is recorded from the 8th century, earlier than the noun.^(Kluge 2011|867)^(Pfeifer 1993) In the Ludwigslied, Otfrid, Notker and the glosses it means “to play, to sport”, “to act”, “to move about, frolic, leap” and “to fight”, and with a genitive “to play a game”.^(Schützeichel 2012|305)

+

+ ==Semantic evolution==

+ Middle High German ''spiln'' meant “to jest, enjoy oneself” with sports, tournaments, board games and dice, “to move lively, be merry” and “to make music”.^(Pfeifer 1993) The verb kept the old sense of lively movement longer than the noun, as in waves, lights or muscles that ''spielen'';^(Duden 7 2007) hence ''Spielraum'', in the 18th century a technical word for the room a body has to move in.^(Duden 7 2007)^(Pfeifer 1993) Hartmann von Aue already uses the present participle in the sense “effortlessly”, the use of modern ''spielend''.^(Paul 2002)

+

+ Luther speaks of playing comedies and tragedies.^(Paul 2002) Until the 19th century the game stood in the genitive, as in ''Versteckens spielen'' “to play hide-and-seek”.^(Paul 2002) Many prefixed verbs come from the stage or from cards: ''zuspielen'' “to pass to someone secretly” (17th century, probably from card games), ''sich abspielen'' “to take place” (early 19th century) and ''sich aufspielen'' “to show off” (19th century).^(Pfeifer 1993)^(Duden 7 2007)

+

+ The verb passed into Czech as ''spíleti'' “to tease”,^(LWP) and English took ''spiel'' in 1859 for gambling talk.^(LWP)

+

+ ==Timeline==

+ * 8th century – Old High German ''spilōn'' is recorded.^(Kluge 2011|867)^(Pfeifer 1993)

+ * 16th century – Luther uses ''spielen'' of performing plays.^(Paul 2002)

+ * 16th century – ''aufspielen'' “to strike up music” is recorded.^(Pfeifer 1993)

+ * 17th century – ''zuspielen'' and the adverb ''spielend'' “easily” appear.^(Pfeifer 1993)

+ * 18th century – ''Spielraum'' is used as a technical term.^(Pfeifer 1993)^(Duden 7 2007)

+ * Early 19th century – ''sich abspielen'' “to take place” is recorded.^(Pfeifer 1993)

+ * 1859 – English records ''spiel''.^(LWP)

+

+ ==Meanings==

+ ===Verb===

+ # ''(intransitive)'' To [[m|en|play]], to occupy oneself with something for fun: ''die Kinder spielen im Garten''.^(Duden GWDS 1999)^(Wiktionary)

+ # ''(transitive)'' To play a game or sport: ''Karten spielen'', ''Handball spielen''.^(Duden GWDS 1999)^(Wiktionary)

+ # ''(intransitive)'' To [[m|en|gamble]], to take part in a game of chance.^(Duden GWDS 1999)

+ # To play a musical instrument or a piece of music.^(Duden GWDS 1999)^(Wiktionary)

+ # To [[m|en|perform]] a role or a play; to act;^(Duden GWDS 1999)^(Wiktionary) ''(figurative)'' to pretend to be: ''den Helden spielen''.^(Duden GWDS 1999)^(Wiktionary)

+ # ''(intransitive)'' To be set in a time or place, of a story: ''der Film spielt in Wien''.^(Duden GWDS 1999)^(Wiktionary)

+ # ''(intransitive)'' To move lightly to and fro; of colours, to shade into another.^(Duden GWDS 1999)^(Paul 2002)

+

+ ==Word family==

+ * [[abspielen]]

+ * [[anspielen]]

+ * [[Anspielung]]

+ * [[aufspielen]]

+ * [[ausspielen]]

+ * [[mitspielen]]

+ * [[verspielen]]

+ * [[vorspielen]]

+ * [[zuspielen]]

+ * [[spielend]]

+ * [[Spieler]]

+ * [[spielerisch]]

+ * [[Spielerei]]

+

+ ==Related words==

+ * [[Spiel]]

+

+ ==Usage notes==

+ ''Mit dem Feuer spielen'' “to play with fire” is recorded by Kramer, and ''Beziehungen spielen lassen'' is to pull strings.^(Paul 2002)

+

+ ==References==

+ {{reflist}}