thick English · revision 5058

+ {{infobox|confidence=established|formation=inherited|attested=c. 888|origins=gem-pro *þiku-}}

+

+ ==Pronunciation==

+ * IPA: /θɪk/^(Roach et al. 2011)

+

+ ==Etymology==

+ It is [[inh|enm|thikke]], [[inh|ang|þicce|t=dense, solid; numerous]],^(Etymonline)^(Barnhart 1988)^(Hoad 1986) from [[gem-pro|*þiku-|alt=*thiku-]],^(Etymonline) the source also of Dutch dik, German dick and Old Norse þykkr.^(Etymonline)^(Barnhart 1988)^(Hoad 1986) Watkins reconstructs it from [[ine-pro|*tegu-|t=thick]], the source also of Old Irish tiug and Welsh tew,^(Etymonline)^(Barnhart 1988)^(MWU 2024) but Hoad calls the Germanic word of unknown origin.^(Hoad 1986)

+

+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==

+ Having great extent between its opposite surfaces: about 888 in the OED, before 899 in Alfred's Boethius in Barnhart.^(OED 1989)^(Barnhart 1988)

+

+ ==Semantic evolution==

+ Of fog and clouds it is from late Old English,^(Etymonline) and of a person, stout and burly, from the mid-13th century.^(Etymonline)^(OED 1989) Of heavy voices it is from the late 14th century.^(Etymonline) The sense “stupid” is from the 1590s, and Falstaff in Henry IV, Part 2 says Poins's wit is “as thick as Tewkesbury mustard”.^(Etymonline)^(Cresswell 2021) From the sense “close together” came the colloquial “intimate, very friendly” (1756), hence ''thick as thieves'' (1833).^(Etymonline)^(Cresswell 2021) ''Through thick and thin'' is Middle English, and ''in the thick of'' is from the 1680s.^(Etymonline) ''Lay it on thick'' is by 1840, and ''a bit thick'', too much to bear, from 1884.^(Etymonline)^(OED 1989)

+

+ ==Timeline==

+ * c. 888 – thick, not thin.^(OED 1989)

+ * mid-13th century – of a person, stout.^(Etymonline)

+ * 1590s – stupid.^(Etymonline)

+ * 1680s – ''in the thick of''.^(Etymonline)

+ * 1756 – intimate.^(Etymonline)

+ * 1833 – ''thick as thieves''.^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Modern meaning==

+ ===Adjective===

+ # Large in distance between opposite sides; not thin.^(AHD)^(Collins 2023)

+ # Having a particular thickness: ''two inches thick''.^(AHD)^(Collins 2023)

+ # Growing or set close together; [[dense]].^(AHD)^(Collins 2023)

+ # Of a liquid, not flowing easily.^(AHD)^(Collins 2023)

+ # Of fog or smoke, hard to see through.^(AHD)^(Collins 2023)

+ # ''(informal)'' Stupid.^(AHD)^(Collins 2023)

+ # ''(informal)'' Very friendly.^(AHD)^(Collins 2023)

+ # Of an accent, very strong.^(AHD)^(Collins 2023)

+

+ ===Noun===

+ # The most active or intense part: ''in the thick of the fight''.^(AHD)^(Collins 2023)

+

+ ===Adverb===

+ # Thickly, densely or heavily.^(AHD)^(Collins 2023)

+

+ ==Word family==

+ * [[thickish]]

+ * [[thickly]]

+ * [[thick-knee]]

+ * [[thick-skulled]]

+ * [[thick-witted]]

+ * [[thicket]]

+ * [[thickhead]]

+ * [[thickness]]

+

+ ==Related words==

+ * [[thicken]]

+ * [[thickset]]

+

+ ==References==

+ {{reflist}}