label English · revision 5244

+ {{infobox|confidence=probable|formation=borrowing|attested=c. 1300|origins=fro label}}

+

+ ==Pronunciation==

+ * IPA: /ˈleɪ.bəl/^(Roach et al. 2011)

+

+ ==Etymology==

+ It is [[inh|enm|label|alt=lable]], [[bor|fro|label|t=ribbon, fillet, fringe]],^(Etymonline)^(Barnhart 1988)^(MWU 2024) probably from a Germanic word with a diminutive suffix, compare Old High German lappa “flap”,^(Barnhart 1988)^(Hoad 1986)^(Etymonline) and so related to [[lap]] “part of a garment”.^(Barnhart 1988)^(Hoad 1986)^(NODE 1998) The Old French word survives as Modern French lambeau “rag, shred”.^(Etymonline)^(Hoad 1986)

+

+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==

+ A narrow band or strip of cloth, especially in heraldry the band with pendants marking an eldest son: about 1300 in Barnhart and Etymonline, about 1320 in the OED.^(Barnhart 1988)^(Etymonline)^(OED 1989)

+

+ ==Semantic evolution==

+ A strip attached to a document to carry its seal is from before 1400 in Wycliffe.^(Barnhart 1988) A slip of paper attached to an object to name or describe it is from 1679,^(OED 1989) from which came the sticker on a record (1907) and in turn a recording company (by 1947).^(OED 1989)^(Etymonline) The verb, to put a label on, is from about 1600,^(Etymonline)^(MWU 2024) and the figurative sense “to describe or classify” from 1853.^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Timeline==

+ * c. 1300 – a strip of cloth in heraldry.^(Barnhart 1988)^(Etymonline)

+ * a. 1400 – a seal strip on a document.^(Barnhart 1988)

+ * c. 1600 – verb.^(Etymonline)

+ * 1679 – a slip naming an object.^(OED 1989)

+ * 1853 – to categorize.^(Etymonline)

+ * by 1947 – a recording company.^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Modern meaning==

+ ===Noun===

+ # A piece of paper or other material fixed to an object to give information about it; a [[tag]].^(AHD)^(Collins 2023)

+ # A word or phrase used to describe a person or group, often unfairly.^(AHD)^(Collins 2023)

+ # A [[brand]] name, especially of a recording company.^(AHD)^(Collins 2023)

+

+ ===Verb===

+ # To attach a label to something.^(AHD)^(Collins 2023)

+ # To describe or classify someone, often unfairly.^(AHD)^(Collins 2023)

+ # ''(chemistry)'' To mark a compound with a [[tracer]].^(AHD)

+

+ ==Word family==

+ * [[labeler]]

+ * [[labelable]]

+ * [[mislabel]]

+ * [[radiolabel]]

+ * [[off-label]]

+ * [[open-label]]

+ * [[relabel]]

+ * [[private label]]

+

+ ==Related words==

+ * [[lap]]

+

+ ==References==

+ {{reflist}}