notch English · revision 39659

+ {{infobox|confidence=probable|formation=borrowing|attested=1555, R. Eden, translation of Biringuccio's Pirotechnia|origins=fro osche}}

+

+ ==Pronunciation==

+ * /nɔːtʃ/^(Wiktionary)

+ * UK: /nɒtʃ/^(Wiktionary)

+ * US: /nɑtʃ/^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Etymology==

+ It is apparently [[bor|xno|noche|t=notch, tally mark]], recorded in Anglo-Norman from the early 14th century,^(OED 2026)^(AND)^(ODE 2010) a variant of [[m|xno|osche]], also Middle French, Old French [[m|fro|osche]] (1170) and [[m|fro|oche]], meaning a notch, a hole, or a mark cut to keep a record;^(OED 2026)^(Hoad 1986) modern French has [[m|fr|hoche|t=nick, small notch]].^(OED 2026)^(Klein 1966) The initial ''n'' is usually explained as taken over from the indefinite article, “an otch” becoming “a notch”,^(Etymonline)^(Barnhart 1988)^(AHD 2024)^(Klein 1966) although the OED places this attraction in French.^(OED 2026) The French noun is related to [[m|fro|oschier|t=to notch]],^(Barnhart 1988)^(Klein 1966) and is cognate with [[m|oc|osca]] and [[ca|osca]]; its further origin is uncertain and disputed, a Gaulish word related to [[br|ask|t=notch]] and a survival related to [[eu|ozka|t=notch]] having been suggested.^(OED 2026) A verb [[m|enm|ochen|t=to cut, slash]], from the Old French verb, is recorded in the alliterative poem Morte Arthure before 1400.^(Barnhart 1988)^(Skeat 1911)^(OED 2026) Despite their similar form and meaning, no etymological link with [[nick]] or [[nock]] has been established.^(OED 2026)^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==

+ A groove or V-shaped cut in an edge or across a surface: 1555, in Richard Eden's translation of Biringuccio's ''Pirotechnia''.^(OED 2026) Barnhart dates the noun to 1577, and Merriam-Webster to about 1560.^(Barnhart 1988)^(MWU 2024)

+

+ ==Semantic evolution==

+ From the start the word was used of the nicks cut in a stick to keep a tally or score (1565),^(OED 2026) and in early cricket a run was called a ''notch'' (1730), because runs were counted by cutting notches.^(OED 2026)^(Skeat 1911)^(Etymonline) The verb, from the noun, at first meant to record by notches (1573) and to cut notches in (1581);^(OED 2026) to cut hair unevenly was a sense used from about 1590 to 1747.^(OED 2026)^(Barnhart 1988) The sporting verb, to score or achieve, is recorded from 1836, in Dickens's ''Pickwick Papers'', and is now usually ''notch up''.^(OED 2026)^(Etymonline) From 1670 a notch was also a step or degree on a scale, as in ''a notch above''.^(OED 2026)^(Collins 2023) In North America it came to mean a narrow mountain pass (from 1649),^(OED 2026) mostly a New England and New York word for what further south was called a ''gap''.^(Etymonline) Johnson (1755) derived the word from Italian ''nocchia''.^(Johnson 1755)

+

+ ==Timeline==

+ * before 1400 – Middle English ''ochen'', to cut.^(Barnhart 1988)^(Skeat 1911)

+ * 1555 – a V-shaped cut or groove.^(OED 2026)

+ * 1565 – a nick made to keep a tally.^(OED 2026)

+ * 1573 – verb, to record by notches.^(OED 2026)

+ * 1581 – verb, to cut notches in.^(OED 2026)

+ * 1649 – a narrow mountain pass (chiefly North American).^(OED 2026)

+ * 1670 – a step or degree.^(OED 2026)

+ * 1730 – a run in cricket.^(OED 2026)

+ * 1836 – verb, to score or achieve.^(OED 2026)^(Etymonline)

+ * 1846 – a hole in a belt or strap.^(OED 2026)

+

+ ==Modern meaning==

+ ===Noun===

+ # A V-shaped cut, [[groove]] or [[indentation]] in an edge or surface; a [[nick]].^(Collins 2023)^(MWU 2024)

+ # A cut made in a stick or other object to keep a [[tally]] or record.^(Collins 2023)^(OED 2026)

+ # (informal) A step or level on a scale: ''Her cooking is a notch above the rest.''^(Collins 2023)^(OED 2026)

+ # (chiefly North America) A narrow mountain [[pass]] or [[gorge]].^(Collins 2023)^(OED 2026)

+ # A small cut-out area at the top edge of the screen of a phone or other electronic device.^(Collins 2023)

+

+ ===Verb===

+ # To cut a notch or notches in.^(Collins 2023)^(MWU 2024)

+ # To record by cutting notches.^(Collins 2023)^(MWU 2024)

+ # (usually ''notch up'') To [[score]] or achieve: ''The team notched up its fifth straight win.''^(Collins 2023)^(OED 2026)

+

+ ==Word family==

+ * [[notched]]

+ * [[notchy]]

+ * [[notchback]]

+

+ ==Related words==

+ * [[nick]]

+ * [[nock]]

+ * [[oche]]

+ * [[top-notch]]

+

+ ==References==

+ {{reflist}}