reset English · revision 39429

+ {{infobox|confidence=established|formation=derivation|attested=1628}}

+

+ ==Pronunciation==

+ * Verb: /ɹiːˈsɛt/^(Wiktionary)

+ * Noun: /ˈɹiː.sɛt/^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Etymology==

+ It is formed [[af|en|re-|set]].^(OED 2026)^(Etymonline)^(Dictionary.com 2016)

+

+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==

+ To set again in a different way or position: 1628, according to the OED and Merriam-Webster.^(OED 2026)^(MWU 2024) Etymonline dates the verb to the 1650s, of putting a gem into a new setting.^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Semantic evolution==

+ In the 17th century the verb was used of replanting (1650), resetting jewels (1655) and setting type again (1682).^(OED 2026) A surgeon could ''reset'' a broken limb by 1804.^(OED 2026) From 1846 a device could be reset, that is, returned to a state of readiness;^(OED 2026) in computing, from 1944, it meant setting a counter or a binary cell back to zero; by 1946 a device could also reset by itself.^(OED 2026) The noun, for type set up again, appears in Webster's dictionary of 1847,^(OED 2026)^(Etymonline) and the general sense of an act of resetting followed in 1882.^(OED 2026)

+

+ ==Timeline==

+ * 1628 – to set again in another position.^(OED 2026)^(MWU 2024)

+ * 1650 – to replant.^(OED 2026)

+ * 1655 – to put a gem in a new setting.^(OED 2026)^(Etymonline)

+ * 1682 – to set type again.^(OED 2026)

+ * 1804 – to set a broken bone again.^(OED 2026)

+ * 1846 – to return a device to its former state.^(OED 2026)^(Etymonline)

+ * 1847 – noun: type set up again.^(OED 2026)

+ * 1944 – computing: to set a counter to zero.^(OED 2026)

+

+ ==Modern meaning==

+ ===Verb===

+ # To set something again or in a new way, such as a [[gem]], a broken [[bone]] or type for [[printing]].^(Collins 2023)^(MWU 2024)

+ # To return a [[gauge]], [[dial]] or other device to zero or to its starting state.^(Collins 2023)^(OED 2026)

+ # To fix a rate, price or target at a new level.^(OED 2026)

+ # ''(of a device)'' To return to its initial state by itself.^(OED 2026)

+

+ ===Noun===

+ # An act or instance of resetting.^(Collins 2023)^(MWU 2024)

+ # A device for restoring something to its starting position, such as a reset [[button]].^(MWU 2024)^(SOED 2002)

+

+ ==Word family==

+ * [[resettable]]

+

+ ==Usage notes==

+ Scots law has a ''reset'' of different origin: to receive stolen goods, and the offence of doing so.^(OED 2026)^(SOED 2002) It is [[enm|recetten]], from [[fro|receter|t=to receive, harbour]], from [[la|receptō]], a frequentative of [[m|la|recipiō|t=to receive]],^(MWU 2024)^(Klein 1966) and in Middle English it meant to shelter a person, especially an outlaw (about 1300).^(OED 2026)^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==References==

+ {{reflist}}