cancellation English · revision 39758

+ {{infobox|confidence=established|formation=borrowing|attested=1535|origins=la cancer}}

+

+ ==Pronunciation==

+ * US: /kænsəˈleɪʃən/^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Etymology==

+ It is [[bor|la|cancellātiō]],^(OED 2026)^(Etymonline)^(Dictionary.com 2016) a noun of action from [[m|la|cancellō|t=to make like a lattice; to cross out]], the source of [[cancel]], with the suffix that became [[-ation]].^(OED 2026)^(Etymonline)^(SOED 2002) Merriam-Webster treats it as formed from ''cancel'' in English.^(MWU 2024) The OED notes that in Latin the noun only meant the fixing of a boundary.^(OED 2026) The verb comes from [[m|la|cancellī|t=lattice, crossbars]], a diminutive of [[m|la|cancer|t=lattice]], according to Etymonline a variant of [[m|la|carcer|t=prison]].^(Etymonline)^(MWU 2024)

+

+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==

+ The act of cancelling, especially the crossing out of writing or the annulling of a legal document: 1535, in an Act of Henry VIII;^(OED 2026)^(MWU 2024) the 1530s in Etymonline.^(Etymonline) Etymonline also notes an earlier use, in early 15th-century medical writing, for the crossing of the images formed by the two eyes.^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Semantic evolution==

+ Johnson (1755), citing the jurist Bartolus, defined cancellation as the wiping out of a document's contents by two lines drawn across it like a cross,^(Johnson 1755) which reflects the Latin sense of the verb, to mark with lattice-like lines.^(Etymonline)^(OED 2026) From 1843 the noun was also used in that literal sense, the marking with crossed lines.^(OED 2026) The application to reserved seats, rooms and travel bookings, and to a place freed in this way, dates from 1953.^(OED 2026)^(Etymonline)^(SOED 2002) The American spelling ''cancelation'' is also used.^(Collins 2023)^(MWU 2024)

+

+ ==Timeline==

+ * early 15th century – the crossing of retinal images.^(Etymonline)

+ * 1535 – the act of cancelling or annulling.^(OED 2026)

+ * 1843 – marking with crossed lines.^(OED 2026)

+ * 1953 – the cancelling of a reservation; a place so freed.^(OED 2026)

+

+ ==Modern meaning==

+ ===Noun===

+ # The act of [[cancel|alt=cancelling]] something, such as an arrangement, a contract or an event: ''the cancellation of the concert''.^(Collins 2023)^(MWU 2024)

+ # A booking or [[reservation]] that has been cancelled, or the seat or room it frees: ''We got a table thanks to a late cancellation.''^(Collins 2023)^(MWU 2024)^(OED 2026)

+ # The marks made on a piece of [[mail]] to show that its [[postage stamp]] has been used.^(Collins 2023)^(MWU 2024)

+

+ ==Related words==

+ * [[cancel]]

+ * [[chancel]]

+ * [[chancellor]]

+ * [[incarceration]]

+

+ ==References==

+ {{reflist}}