manual English · revision 6011

+ {{infobox|confidence=established|formation=borrowing|attested=1406|origins=la manualis}}

+

+ ==Pronunciation==

+ * IPA: /ˈmæn.ju.əl/^(Roach et al. 2011)

+

+ ==Etymology==

+ It is Middle English manuel, [[bor|frm|manuel]] and directly from [[la|manuālis|t=of or belonging to the hand]],^(Barnhart 1988)^(Hoad 1986)^(MWU 2024) later assimilated to the Latin,^(Hoad 1986)^(NODE 1998) from [[m|la|manus|t=hand]],^(Etymonline)^(Barnhart 1988) from the PIE root [[ine-pro|*man-|t=hand]],^(Etymonline) which Barnhart and Hoad connect with Old English and Old Norse mund “hand”.^(Barnhart 1988)^(Hoad 1986)^(MWU 2024) The noun is Old French manuel “handbook”, from Late Latin manuāle “case of a book, handbook”, a noun use of the neuter.^(Etymonline)^(Barnhart 1988)^(Hoad 1986)

+

+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==

+ Of or done with the hands: 1406 in the OED and probably in Barnhart, about 1400 in Etymonline.^(OED 1989)^(Barnhart 1988)^(Etymonline) The noun, a small service book used by a priest, is from 1432.^(Barnhart 1988)^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Semantic evolution==

+ A concise handbook of any sort is from the 1530s;^(Etymonline) Etymonline notes the etymological sense, a book small enough to carry in the hand.^(Etymonline) A signature in one's own hand, as in sign manual, is from 1522,^(OED 1989) and of tools worked by hand from 1591.^(OED 1989) The manual exercise, drill in handling a rifle, is from 1760.^(Etymonline)^(OED 1989) The keyboard of an organ played with the hands, as distinct from the pedals, is a 19th-century sense.^(Hoad 1986) Manual labour, physical rather than mental work, and a car with a manual gearbox are later uses.^(Collins 2023)^(AHD)

+

+ ==Timeline==

+ * 1406 – done with the hands.^(OED 1989)^(Barnhart 1988)

+ * 1432 – a priest's service book.^(Barnhart 1988)

+ * 1530s – a handbook.^(Etymonline)

+ * 1591 – worked by hand.^(OED 1989)

+ * 1760 – the manual exercise.^(Etymonline)^(OED 1989)

+ * 19th century – an organ keyboard.^(Hoad 1986)

+

+ ==Modern meaning==

+ ===Adjective===

+ # Done or worked by hand, not by machine or automatically: ''manual controls''.^(AHD)^(Collins 2023)

+ # Involving physical work: ''manual labour''.^(AHD)^(Collins 2023)

+ # Relating to the hands.^(AHD)^(Collins 2023)

+

+ ===Noun===

+ # A book of instructions; a [[handbook]].^(AHD)^(Collins 2023)

+ # A keyboard of an [[organ]] played with the hands.^(AHD)^(Hoad 1986)

+ # A vehicle with a manual gearbox.^(Collins 2023)

+

+ ==Word family==

+ * [[manually]]

+ * [[bimanual]]

+ * [[manualism]]

+ * [[manualist]]

+ * [[nonmanual]]

+ * [[sign manual]]

+ * [[manual transmission]]

+ * [[manual alphabet]]

+

+ ==Related words==

+ * [[amanuensis]]

+ * [[manufacture]]

+ * [[manumit]]

+ * [[manus]]

+ * [[manuscript]]

+ * [[manicure]]

+ * [[manipulate]]

+ * [[manage]]

+ * [[emancipate]]

+

+ ==References==

+ {{reflist}}