belong English · revision 5549

+ {{infobox|confidence=established|formation=derivation|attested=1340, Ayenbite of Inwit}}

+

+ ==Pronunciation==

+ * IPA: UK /bɪˈlɒŋ/, /bəˈlɒŋ/, US /bɪˈlɑːŋ/, /bɪˈlɔːŋ/^(Roach et al. 2011)

+

+ ==Etymology==

+ It is Middle English belongen, formed from [[be-]], an intensive prefix, and longen “to go along with, belong”,^(Etymonline)^(Barnhart 1988)^(MWU 2024)^(SOED 2002) from Old English langian “to pertain to”, of uncertain origin but perhaps related to [[long]].^(Etymonline) Barnhart and NODE base longen on Old English gelang “at hand, dependent on”, which is in Beowulf.^(Barnhart 1988)^(NODE 1998)^(Hoad 1986) Middle Dutch belanghen and German belangen “to concern” are similar, but no matching Old English verb is found.^(Barnhart 1988)^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==

+ To go along with or accompany, and to pertain or relate to: 1340, in the Ayenbite of Inwit.^(OED 1989)^(Barnhart 1988) Etymonline has the mid-14th century.^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Semantic evolution==

+ To be the property of someone and to be a member of a group are from the late 14th century, 1393 in the OED.^(Etymonline)^(OED 1989) With adverbs, as in ''it belongs here'', it is from 1822.^(OED 1989) ''Belongings'' was first used in Shakespeare's Measure for Measure (1603), for circumstances connected with a person,^(Barnhart 1988)^(Hoad 1986) and as possessions from the 19th century.^(Hoad 1986)

+

+ ==Timeline==

+ * 1340 – to go along with, pertain to.^(OED 1989)

+ * 1393 – to be the property of.^(OED 1989)

+ * 1603 – ''belongings''.^(Barnhart 1988)

+ * 1822 – to have a proper place.^(OED 1989)

+

+ ==Modern meaning==

+ ===Verb===

+ # ''(belong to)'' To be someone's property.^(AHD)^(Collins 2023)

+ # ''(belong to)'' To be a [[member]] of a group or organization.^(AHD)^(Collins 2023)

+ # To have a proper or usual place: ''the books belong on that shelf''.^(AHD)^(Collins 2023)

+ # To feel comfortable and accepted in a group or place.^(AHD)

+

+ ==Word family==

+ * [[belonger]]

+ * [[belonging]]

+ * [[belongingness]]

+

+ ==Related words==

+ * [[belongings]]

+ * [[long]]

+

+ ==Usage notes==

+ In Durham and Lancashire dialect belong could also mean to own, or to live at or come from a place.^(Wright 1898)

+

+ ==References==

+ {{reflist}}