spray English · revision 7047
16 Oct 2026, 12:58 by bogdan “en10k b0286: lap … cole” current version
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+ English has two words spelled spray: liquid in fine drops, related to Middle Dutch sprayen, to sprinkle, and a small branch of leaves or flowers, of obscure origin.^(Barnhart 1988)^(Etymonline)^(Hoad 1986)
+
+ ==Pronunciation==
+ * IPA: /spɹeɪ/^(Wiktionary)
+
+ {{homograph|1|fine drops of liquid}}
+
+ {{infobox|confidence=uncertain|formation=borrowing|attested=1527|origins=dum sprayen}}
+
+ ==Etymology==
+ The noun is from the obsolete verb spray, to sprinkle (1527), [[bor|dum|sprayen|t=to sprinkle]], spraeien,^(Barnhart 1988)^(Etymonline)^(MWU 2024) from Proto-Germanic *sprēwjaną, source also of German [[m|de|sprühen|t=to sparkle, drizzle]],^(Etymonline)^(Barnhart 1988) perhaps from PIE [[ine-pro|*sper-|t=to strew]], also the root of Greek [[m|grc|σπείρω|tr=speírein|t=to sow, scatter]].^(Barnhart 1988)^(Etymonline) Hoad and SOED call its immediate source unknown.^(Hoad 1986)^(SOED 2002)
+
+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==
+ Water blown in droplets by the wind or waves: before 1621, in Sandys's translation of Ovid;^(Barnhart 1988) the 1620s in Etymonline.^(Etymonline) The verb, to sprinkle, is from 1527.^(Barnhart 1988)^(MWU 2024)
+
+ ==Semantic evolution==
+ Any liquid dispersed in fine particles is by 1750,^(Etymonline) and a jet of vapour from the 19th century.^(Hoad 1986) The verb, to scatter in a spray, is revived in 1829, in Carlyle.^(Barnhart 1988) An aerosol or atomizer and its contents is a 20th-century sense.^(AHD)^(Collins 2023)
+
+ ==Timeline==
+ * 1527 – to sprinkle (verb).^(Barnhart 1988)
+ * before 1621 – sea spray.^(Barnhart 1988)
+ * 1750 – any fine liquid.^(Etymonline)
+ * 1829 – to scatter as spray.^(Barnhart 1988)
+
+ ==Modern meaning==
+ ===Noun===
+ # Liquid blown or falling through the air in fine drops: ''sea spray''.^(AHD)^(Collins 2023)
+ # A liquid sprayed from a container, or the container itself; an [[aerosol]].^(AHD)^(Collins 2023)
+
+ ===Verb===
+ # To scatter liquid in fine drops.^(AHD)^(Collins 2023)
+ # To cover with a spray: ''spray the crops''.^(AHD)^(Collins 2023)
+ # To scatter or fire in all directions: ''spray bullets''.^(AHD)^(Collins 2023)
+
+ ==Word family==
+ * [[sprayer]]
+ * [[spray gun]]
+ * [[spray paint]]
+
+ {{homograph|2|small branch of flowers}}
+
+ {{infobox|confidence=uncertain|attested=1297}}
+
+ ==Etymology==
+ It is Middle English sprai, of obscure origin,^(Etymonline)^(Hoad 1986)^(SOED 2002) perhaps related to late Old English *spræg, spræc, a shoot or twig, found in place-names (see [[sprig]]), with which Etymonline compares Danish sprag.^(Etymonline)^(Barnhart 1988)^(MWU 2024)
+
+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==
+ Small twigs of trees collectively: 1297 in the OED, about 1250 in Barnhart, earlier in the place-name Spray (1179).^(OED 1989)^(Barnhart 1988)
+
+ ==Semantic evolution==
+ A single slender shoot or twig is from 1387.^(OED 1989) A graceful shoot or small branch with leaves and flowers, as used for decoration, is from 1862,^(Barnhart 1988)^(OED 1989) and a brooch made to imitate a spray of flowers from 1803.^(OED 1989)
+
+ ==Timeline==
+ * 1179 – Spray, as a place-name.^(Barnhart 1988)
+ * 1297 – twigs collectively.^(OED 1989)
+ * 1387 – a single shoot.^(OED 1989)
+ * 1862 – a decorative spray of flowers.^(Barnhart 1988)^(OED 1989)
+
+ ==Modern meaning==
+ ===Noun===
+ # A small branch or stem with leaves, flowers or berries.^(AHD)^(Collins 2023)
+ # An arrangement of cut flowers, or a brooch shaped like one.^(AHD)^(Collins 2023)
+
+ ==Related words==
+ * [[sprig]]
+ * [[sprout]]
+ * [[spore]]
+ * [[sperm]]
+
+ ==References==
+ {{reflist}}