arm English · revision 3694

+ English has two words spelled ''arm'': the limb, inherited from Old English, and the weapon, from Latin arma through French; they had very different routes into English, though both probably go back to the same Indo-European root.^(Cresswell 2021)^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Pronunciation==

+ * IPA: UK /ɑːm/, US /ɑːrm/^(Roach et al. 2011)

+

+ {{homograph|1|limb}}

+

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

+

+ ==Etymology==

+ The limb is [[inh|enm|arm]],^(Etymonline)^(MWU 2024) [[inh|ang|earm]],^(Etymonline)^(Barnhart 1988) from [[gem-pro|*armaz]],^(Etymonline)^(Barnhart 1988)^(Hoad 1986) which is also the source of Old Saxon, Dutch and German arm, Old Frisian erm, Old Norse armr and Gothic arms.^(Etymonline)^(Barnhart 1988)^(Hoad 1986) It is from [[ine-pro|*ar-|t=to fit together]],^(Etymonline)^(Barnhart 1988) the root also of Latin armus “shoulder (of an animal)”, Greek harmós “joint”, Sanskrit īrmá- “arm” and Armenian armukn “elbow”.^(Barnhart 1988)^(MWU 2024)

+

+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==

+ The upper limb of the human body: about 725, in ''Beowulf'',^(Barnhart 1988) and in the OED from about 950.^(OED 1989) The figurative sense “might, power, authority”, as in the ''secular arm'', is equally old.^(OED 1989) An ''arm of the sea'' was already Old English.^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Semantic evolution==

+ A support or prop, ''right arm'' as one's main stay, is from 1382.^(OED 1989) ''Arm in arm'' is from about 1374, found in Chaucer,^(OED 1989)^(Etymonline) and ''at arm's length'' from 1580.^(OED 1989) Arm as a measure of length is from 1572.^(OED 1989) The verb “to give one's arm to” is from about 1612.^(OED 1989) The ''long arm of the law'' is from the mid-18th century,^(Cresswell 2021) and ''arm-wrestling'' and ''arm-twister'' are from 1899 and 1915.^(Etymonline) To ''cost an arm and a leg'' seems to be from the 20th century.^(Cresswell 2021)

+

+ ==Timeline==

+ * c. 725 – the limb, in ''Beowulf''.^(Barnhart 1988)

+ * c. 950 – power, authority.^(OED 1989)

+ * c. 1374 – ''arm in arm''.^(OED 1989)

+ * 1382 – a support.^(OED 1989)

+ * 1580 – ''at arm's length''.^(OED 1989)

+ * mid-18th century – ''long arm of the law''.^(Cresswell 2021)

+ * 1899 – ''arm-wrestling''.^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Modern meaning==

+ ===Noun===

+ # An upper [[limb]] of the human body, from the shoulder to the hand.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)

+ # A similar part, such as the [[forelimb]] of an animal or a long part of a machine.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)

+ # A part made to cover or support the arm, such as a [[sleeve]] or the side of a chair.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)

+ # A narrow projection from a larger body: ''an arm of the sea''.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)

+ # A branch or division of an organisation.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)

+ # Power or authority: ''the arm of the law''.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)

+

+ ==Word family==

+ * [[armful]]

+ * [[armless]]

+ * [[armpit]]

+ * [[armchair]]

+ * [[armband]]

+ * [[forearm]]

+

+ {{homograph|2|weapon}}

+

+ {{infobox|confidence=established|formation=borrowing|attested=before 1250|origins=la arma}}

+

+ ==Etymology==

+ The weapon is [[inh|enm|armes|t=weapons]], plural,^(Etymonline)^(MWU 2024) [[bor|fro|armes|t=arms, weapons; war, warfare]],^(Etymonline)^(Hoad 1986) from [[la|arma|t=weapons, tools]], a plural with no singular,^(Etymonline)^(Hoad 1986) from [[ine-pro|*ar(ə)mo-]], a suffixed form of [[ine-pro|*ar-|t=to fit together]], perhaps as “that which is fitted together”.^(Etymonline) The singular is a back-formation from the plural.^(MWU 2024) The verb is [[inh|enm|armen]], from Old French armer or directly [[der|la|armāre|t=to furnish with arms]].^(Etymonline)^(Hoad 1986)^(MWU 2024)

+

+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==

+ Weapons: before 1250, in ''The Proverbs of Alfred'',^(Barnhart 1988) and in the OED before 1300.^(OED 1989) Etymonline dates armes, “weapons of a warrior”, to about 1300.^(Etymonline) The verb, to furnish with weapons, is from about 1200.^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Semantic evolution==

+ Defensive covering, armour, is from 1340.^(OED 1989) The heraldic sense, as in ''coat of arms'', is from the early 14th century, after Old French usage;^(Etymonline) the arms were first borne on the shields of armed knights.^(Etymonline) A particular kind of weapon, in the singular, is from 1861.^(OED 1989) A branch of military service is from 1798, and a branch of any organisation by 1952.^(Etymonline) ''To bear arms'', to do military service, is from the 1640s, and figurative ''up in arms'' from 1704.^(Etymonline) To prepare a weapon for use, as by releasing a safety device, is a modern sense.^(AHD)

+

+ ==Timeline==

+ * c. 1200 – verb, to arm.^(Etymonline)

+ * before 1250 – weapons.^(Barnhart 1988)

+ * early 14th century – heraldic arms.^(Etymonline)

+ * 1340 – armour.^(OED 1989)

+ * 1640s – ''to bear arms''.^(Etymonline)

+ * 1704 – ''up in arms''.^(Etymonline)

+ * 1798 – a branch of the armed forces.^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Modern meaning==

+ ===Noun===

+ # A [[weapon]], especially a [[firearm]].^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)

+ # A branch of a military force.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)

+ # ''arms'': [[warfare]] or military service.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)

+ # ''arms'': the [[heraldry|alt=heraldic]] bearings of a family, state or organisation; a [[coat of arms]].^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)

+

+ ===Verb===

+ # To supply with weapons; to prepare for war.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)

+ # To equip with what is needed: ''armed with the facts''.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)

+ # To make a weapon or bomb ready to fire or explode.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)

+

+ ==Word family==

+ * [[armed]]

+ * [[armer]]

+ * [[unarmed]]

+ * [[rearm]]

+ * [[disarm]]

+ * [[firearm]]

+ * [[sidearm]]

+

+ ==Related words==

+ * [[army]]

+ * [[armour]]

+ * [[armada]]

+ * [[armadillo]]

+ * [[armistice]]

+ * [[armature]]

+ * [[harmony]]

+ * [[art]]

+

+ ==References==

+ {{reflist}}