memo English · revision 39486

+ {{infobox|confidence=established|formation=clipping|attested=1705|origins=la memor}}

+

+ ==Pronunciation==

+ * UK: /ˈmɛməʊ̯/^(Wiktionary)

+ * US: /ˈmɛmoʊ̯/^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Etymology==

+ It is a shortening of [[memorandum]],^(Etymonline)^(OED 2026)^(MWU 2024)^(Barnhart 1988) first as a written abbreviation.^(OED 2026) That word is [[la|memorandum|t=(a thing) to be remembered]], the neuter of [[m|la|memorandus|t=worth remembering]], the gerundive of [[m|la|memorō|t=to call to mind]],^(Etymonline)^(AHD 2024) from [[m|la|memor|t=mindful]], from [[ine-pro|*(s)mer-|t=to remember]].^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==

+ A note of something to be remembered, a memorandum: 1705, in a letter of John Mordaunt.^(OED 2026)^(MWU 2024) Etymonline and Barnhart date it only from 1889.^(Etymonline)^(Barnhart 1988)

+

+ ==Semantic evolution==

+ For a long time ''memo'' was a colloquial form, but the OED notes that it is now normally used instead of ''memorandum'' except in very formal contexts such as law and diplomacy.^(OED 2026) Its commonest use is for a short written message sent within an organization.^(Collins 2023)^(SOED 2002) The verb, to send a memo to someone or to set something down in one, appears in 1961.^(OED 2026)^(MWU 2024) In American use from the 1980s, phrases such as ''didn't get the memo'' joke that someone is unaware of what everyone else knows.^(OED 2026)^(GDoS)

+

+ ==Timeline==

+ * 1705 – a memorandum.^(OED 2026)^(MWU 2024)

+ * 1889 – first date in Etymonline and Barnhart.^(Etymonline)^(Barnhart 1988)

+ * 1961 – the verb, to send a memo to someone.^(OED 2026)

+ * 1985 – ''didn't get the memo'', unaware of something.^(OED 2026)

+

+ ==Modern meaning==

+ ===Noun===

+ # A short written message sent from one person or department to another within an [[organization]]; a [[memorandum]].^(Collins 2023)^(MWU 2024)^(SOED 2002)

+ # A note made to help one remember something.^(OED 2026)^(MWU 2024)

+

+ ===Verb===

+ # To send a memo to someone, or to set something down in one.^(MWU 2024)^(OED 2026)

+

+ ==Word family==

+ * [[countermemo]]

+

+ ==Related words==

+ * [[memorandum]]

+ * [[memory]]

+ * [[memorable]]

+ * [[remember]]

+

+ ==References==

+ {{reflist}}