costa English · revision 7415
16 Oct 2026, 13:52 by bogdan “en10k b0301: medication … classroom” current version
Initial text
@@ -0,0 +1,58 @@
+ English has two words spelled costa: a scientific term for a rib, from Latin, and a jocular one for a stretch of coast, from Spanish, both going back to Latin costa.^(SOED 2002)^(Etymonline)
+
+ ==Pronunciation==
+ * IPA: /ˈkɒ.stə/ ''(UK)''; /ˈkɑ.stə/ ''(US)''^(Wiktionary)
+
+ {{homograph|1|rib}}
+
+ {{infobox|confidence=established|formation=borrowing|attested=1771|origins=la costa}}
+
+ ==Etymology==
+ It is [[bor|la|costa|t=rib, side, wall]], also the source of English [[coast]].^(MWU 2024)^(SOED 2002)^(Collins 2023)
+
+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==
+ The Latin word for rib, applied in natural history and physiology: 1866 in the OED, the mid-19th century in NODE and SOED;^(OED 1989)^(NODE 1998)^(SOED 2002) MWU dates it to 1771.^(MWU 2024)
+
+ ==Semantic evolution==
+ In botany and zoology it is used of rib-like structures, especially the midrib of a leaf and the front vein of an insect's wing.^(SOED 2002)^(Collins 2023)^(AHD)
+
+ ==Timeline==
+ * 1771 – first use (MWU).^(MWU 2024)
+ * 1866 – in natural history.^(OED 1989)
+
+ ==Modern meaning==
+ ===Noun===
+ # ''(anatomy)'' A [[rib]].^(AHD)^(Collins 2023)
+ # ''(botany, zoology)'' A rib-like part, such as the midrib of a leaf or the front vein of an insect's wing.^(AHD)^(Collins 2023)
+
+ ==Word family==
+ * [[costal]]
+ * [[intercostal]]
+
+ {{homograph|2|jocular coast}}
+
+ {{infobox|confidence=established|formation=borrowing|attested=1968|origins=es costa}}
+
+ ==Etymology==
+ It is [[bor|es|costa|t=coast]], from the same Latin source as English [[coast]],^(Etymonline)^(SOED 2002) as in the resort names Costa Brava and Costa del Sol.^(SOED 2002)
+
+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==
+ The first part of humorous pseudo-place-names: 1968 in the OED;^(OED 1989) used in Britain from the 1960s.^(Etymonline)
+
+ ==Semantic evolution==
+ Etymonline cites jocular formations such as ''costa geriatrica'' and ''costa del crime'', in imitation of Spanish tourist destinations.^(Etymonline) SOED labels it jocular, a coast.^(SOED 2002)
+
+ ==Timeline==
+ * 1960s – jocular pseudo-place-names.^(Etymonline)^(OED 1989)
+
+ ==Modern meaning==
+ ===Noun===
+ # ''(jocular, British)'' A coast or coastal resort area, in humorous imitations of Spanish place-names: ''the Costa del Crime''.^(SOED 2002)^(OED 1989)
+
+ ==Related words==
+ * [[coast]]
+ * [[accost]]
+ * [[cutlet]]
+
+ ==References==
+ {{reflist}}