pack English · revision 4005

+ English has two words spelled ''pack'': the bundle, from Low German or Dutch, and the verb “to fill a jury or committee unfairly”, probably from [[pact]].^(Barnhart 1988)^(Hoad 1986)^(MW Collegiate)

+

+ ==Pronunciation==

+ * IPA: /pæk/^(Roach et al. 2011)

+

+ {{homograph|1|bundle}}

+

+ {{infobox|confidence=probable|formation=borrowing|attested=c. 1200|origins=dum pak}}

+

+ ==Etymology==

+ The bundle is [[inh|enm|pak]], packe,^(Barnhart 1988)^(MWU 2024) probably a borrowing from Low German or Dutch, as Middle Dutch pac, Middle Low German pak or Middle Flemish pac,^(Etymonline)^(Barnhart 1988)^(Hoad 1986) taken into English from the wool traders of Flanders,^(Etymonline)^(NODE 1998) or possibly from Old Norse pakki;^(Etymonline)^(Barnhart 1988) all are of unknown origin.^(Etymonline)^(Hoad 1986) Italian pacco is a loan from Dutch.^(Etymonline) The verb is from the noun, possibly influenced by Anglo-French empaker and Medieval Latin paccāre.^(Etymonline)^(Barnhart 1988) It is related to [[packet]] and [[package]].^(Cresswell 2021)^(Hoad 1986)

+

+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==

+ A bundle of goods, also a bag for carrying things: the early 13th century in Etymonline^(Etymonline) and before 1200 in the Ancrene Riwle according to Barnhart, with the surname Pakbyndere in 1191.^(Barnhart 1988)

+

+ ==Semantic evolution==

+ “A set of persons”, usually of low character, is from the late 14th century,^(Etymonline)^(OED 1989) older than “a group of hunting animals” (mid-15th century).^(Etymonline)^(Barnhart 1988) A set of playing cards is from the 1590s,^(Etymonline)^(Barnhart 1988) floating ice from 1791,^(Etymonline) bundled cigarettes from 1865^(Etymonline) and submarines from 1943.^(Etymonline) A ''pack of lies'' is from 1763,^(Etymonline) and a knapsack on a frame from 1916.^(Etymonline)^(OED 1989) The verb, “to put into a pack”, is from the late 14th century,^(Etymonline)^(Barnhart 1988) “to cram together” from the mid-15th century,^(Etymonline) and “to go away” (''pack off'') also from the mid-15th century.^(Etymonline) “To carry” (1805) led to “to be capable of delivering”, as a punch (1921),^(Etymonline) and ''to pack heat'', to carry a gun, is 1940s underworld slang.^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Timeline==

+ * c. 1200 – a bundle.^(Barnhart 1988)^(Etymonline)

+ * late 14th century – a set of people; verb, to bundle.^(Etymonline)

+ * mid-15th century – a pack of hounds.^(Etymonline)

+ * 1590s – a pack of cards.^(Etymonline)

+ * 1763 – ''pack of lies''.^(Etymonline)

+ * 1921 – to pack a punch.^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Modern meaning==

+ ===Noun===

+ # A collection of items tied or wrapped together; a [[bundle]].^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)

+ # A bag carried on the back; a [[backpack]].^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)

+ # A small packet of a standard number of items: ''a pack of cigarettes''.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)

+ # A group of animals, such as wolves or hounds, that hunt together.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)

+ # A gang or group of people.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)

+ # A complete set of [[playing card|alt=playing cards]].^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)

+ # A large expanse of floating ice.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)

+

+ ===Verb===

+ # To put into a container for carrying or storing.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)

+ # To fill completely; to crowd or cram together.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)

+ # To press down firmly, as earth.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)

+ # To send away, often with ''off''.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)

+ # ''(informal)'' To carry, as a gun, or to be capable of delivering, as a punch.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)

+

+ ==Word family==

+ * [[packer]]

+ * [[packhorse]]

+ * [[backpack]]

+ * [[six-pack]]

+ * [[wolf pack]]

+

+ {{homograph|2|fill unfairly}}

+

+ {{infobox|confidence=uncertain|formation=borrowing|attested=before 1529|origins=en pact}}

+

+ ==Etymology==

+ The verb is probably from the obsolete verb pact, taken as pack with the -ed ending,^(SOED 2002)^(Hoad 1986)^(MWU 2024) an Elizabethan mispronunciation of [[pact]] according to Etymonline;^(Etymonline) Barnhart notes that pack is recorded before pact as a verb (1535), and that the semantic connection is not established.^(Barnhart 1988)

+

+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==

+ To make a secret agreement, to plot: before 1529, in Skelton.^(Barnhart 1988)

+

+ ==Semantic evolution==

+ ''To pack the cards'', to arrange a deck to one's own advantage, is from the 1590s,^(Etymonline)^(Barnhart 1988) and to fill a jury or committee with supporters to get a desired result followed.^(MW Collegiate)^(Hoad 1986) A noun, a secret or underhand arrangement, is from 1571.^(OED 1989)

+

+ ==Timeline==

+ * before 1529 – to plot.^(Barnhart 1988)

+ * 1571 – noun, a secret arrangement.^(OED 1989)

+ * 1590s – ''to pack the cards''.^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Modern meaning==

+ ===Verb===

+ # To fill a jury, committee or meeting with one's own supporters, to get a desired result.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)

+ # ''(archaic)'' To arrange cards in a pack so as to cheat.^(MW Collegiate)

+

+ ==Related words==

+ * [[packet]]

+ * [[package]]

+ * [[pact]]

+

+ ==References==

+ {{reflist}}