web English · revision 3769

+ {{infobox|confidence=established|formation=inherited|attested=c. 725, Beowulf|origins=ine-pro *(h)uebh-}}

+

+ ==Pronunciation==

+ * IPA: /web/^(Roach et al. 2011)

+

+ ==Etymology==

+ It is [[inh|enm|web]],^(MWU 2024) [[inh|ang|webb|t=woven fabric, tapestry]],^(Etymonline)^(Barnhart 1988) related to [[m|ang|wefan|t=to weave]],^(Barnhart 1988)^(MWU 2024) from [[gem-pro|*wabjam|t=fabric, web]],^(Etymonline)^(Hoad 1986) which is also the source of Old Saxon webbi, Dutch web, Old High German weppi and Old Norse vefr,^(Etymonline)^(Barnhart 1988)^(Hoad 1986) from [[ine-pro|*(h)uebh-|t=to weave]].^(Etymonline) It is related to [[weave]] and [[weft]].^(Etymonline)^(Hoad 1986)

+

+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==

+ A woven fabric: about 725, in ''Beowulf''.^(Barnhart 1988)^(OED 1989)

+

+ ==Semantic evolution==

+ A spider's web is from before 1250 in Barnhart,^(Barnhart 1988) or about 1300 in Etymonline.^(Etymonline) In anatomy it was used from about 1300 of the caul and other thin membranes,^(Etymonline) and the membrane between the toes of aquatic birds is from the 1570s.^(Etymonline)^(Barnhart 1988) The figurative snare or entanglement is from 1574,^(Barnhart 1988) and something flimsy or fanciful from Bacon's ''Advancement of Learning'' (1605).^(Barnhart 1988) It was used of large rolls of paper on newspaper presses by 1825.^(Etymonline) The Internet sense is a shortening of [[World Wide Web]], attested by 1990, itself a specialised use of the old word, and ''the Web'' alone is recorded by 1992.^(Etymonline) ''Web page'' and ''web browser'' are from 1990, and ''website'' and ''weblog'' from 1994.^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Timeline==

+ * c. 725 – woven fabric, in ''Beowulf''.^(Barnhart 1988)

+ * before 1250 – a spider's web.^(Barnhart 1988)

+ * c. 1440 – verb, to weave.^(Barnhart 1988)^(OED 1989)

+ * 1574 – a snare.^(Barnhart 1988)

+ * 1576 – membrane between the toes of a bird.^(Barnhart 1988)

+ * 1825 – a roll of paper on a press.^(Etymonline)

+ * 1990 – ''World Wide Web''.^(Etymonline)

+ * 1992 – ''the Web''.^(Etymonline)

+ * 1994 – ''website'', ''weblog''.^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Modern meaning==

+ ===Noun===

+ # A woven fabric, especially one on a [[loom]].^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)

+ # A network of fine threads spun by a [[spider]].^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)

+ # An intricate network or structure: ''a web of lies''.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)

+ # A [[membrane]] joining the toes of a swimming bird or other animal.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)

+ # A continuous roll of paper for a printing press.^(MW Collegiate)

+ # ''the Web'': the [[World Wide Web]].^(MW Collegiate)

+

+ ===Verb===

+ # To cover with or entangle in a web.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)

+

+ ==Word family==

+ * [[webbed]]

+ * [[weblike]]

+ * [[webless]]

+ * [[webbing]]

+ * [[webby]]

+ * [[webcam]]

+ * [[webfoot]]

+ * [[webcast]]

+

+ ==Related words==

+ * [[weave]]

+ * [[weft]]

+ * [[woof]]

+ * [[webster]]

+

+ ==References==

+ {{reflist}}