divine English · revision 6587

+ {{infobox|confidence=established|formation=borrowing|attested=c. 1374|origins=la deus}}

+

+ ==Pronunciation==

+ * IPA: /dɪˈvaɪn/^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Etymology==

+ The adjective is Middle English devyne, [[bor|fro|devin|alt=devin, divin]], from [[la|dīvīnus|t=of a god]],^(Barnhart 1988)^(Etymonline)^(Hoad 1986) from [[m|la|dīvus|t=of a god, godlike]], related to [[m|la|deus|t=god]] (see [[deity]]),^(Barnhart 1988)^(Etymonline)^(Cresswell 2021) from PIE [[ine-pro|*dyew-|alt=*dyeu-|t=to shine; sky, god]].^(Etymonline) The noun and the verb come from the same Latin word, through Old French devin, soothsayer, and deviner, Latin dīvīnāre, to foretell.^(Barnhart 1988)^(Etymonline)^(Hoad 1986)

+

+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==

+ Of or pertaining to God or a god: about 1374 in the OED, about 1380, in Chaucer's ''House of Fame'', in Barnhart.^(OED 1989)^(Barnhart 1988) The noun, a soothsayer, is from probably before 1300.^(Barnhart 1988)^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Semantic evolution==

+ A theologian or clergyman is a divine from about 1387, in Wycliffe.^(Barnhart 1988)^(Etymonline)^(Hoad 1986) The verb, to conjecture or guess, is from about 1378, in ''Piers Plowman'', and to foretell by divination from the late 14th century.^(Barnhart 1988)^(Etymonline) The weakened sense, excellent or delightful, ''heavenly'', developed from the late 15th century,^(Etymonline)^(Cresswell 2021)^(OED 1989) and of persons pre-eminently gifted from 1552.^(OED 1989) The ''divine right'' of kings is from about 1600 and was invoked especially under the Stuarts.^(Etymonline)^(Cresswell 2021) To divine for water with a rod is a later use.^(AHD)^(Collins 2023)

+

+ ==Timeline==

+ * before 1300 – a soothsayer.^(Barnhart 1988)

+ * c. 1374 – of God or a god.^(OED 1989)

+ * c. 1378 – to guess.^(Barnhart 1988)

+ * c. 1387 – a theologian.^(Barnhart 1988)

+ * late 15th century – excellent, heavenly.^(Etymonline)

+ * c. 1600 – divine right.^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Modern meaning==

+ ===Adjective===

+ # Of, from or like [[God]] or a [[god]].^(AHD)^(Collins 2023)

+ # Devoted to God; [[sacred]]: ''divine worship''.^(AHD)^(Collins 2023)

+ # ''(informal)'' Delightful; excellent.^(AHD)^(Collins 2023)

+

+ ===Verb===

+ # To discover or guess by [[intuition]] or insight.^(AHD)^(Collins 2023)

+ # To search for underground water or minerals with a [[divining rod]].^(AHD)^(Collins 2023)

+

+ ===Noun===

+ # A [[clergyman]] or [[theologian]].^(AHD)^(Collins 2023)

+

+ ==Word family==

+ * [[divinely]]

+ * [[divineness]]

+ * [[diviner]]

+ * [[divinable]]

+ * [[semidivine]]

+ * [[subdivine]]

+ * [[superdivine]]

+ * [[divinize]]

+

+ ==Related words==

+ * [[divination]]

+ * [[divinity]]

+ * [[deity]]

+ * [[Jupiter]]

+

+ ==References==

+ {{reflist}}