tender English · revision 7768

+ Tender, soft, comes from Latin tener; tender, to offer, from Latin tendere, to stretch; and tender, one who tends, is formed on the English verb [[tend]].^(Etymonline)^(Barnhart 1988)^(Hoad 1986)

+

+ ==Pronunciation==

+ * IPA: UK /ˈten.də/, US /ˈten.dɚ/^(Roach et al. 2011)

+

+ {{homograph|1|soft, gentle}}

+

+ {{infobox|confidence=established|formation=borrowing|attested=before 1200|origins=la tener}}

+

+ ==Etymology==

+ It is Middle English tendre, [[bor|fro|tendre|t=soft, delicate, young]], earlier tenre,^(Barnhart 1988)^(Etymonline)^(Hoad 1986) from Latin [[m|la|tener|t=soft, delicate, of tender age]],^(Etymonline)^(Barnhart 1988) probably cognate with Greek térēn, delicate, and Sanskrit táruṇa, young,^(Barnhart 1988)^(Etymonline)^(MWU 2024) perhaps from PIE [[ine-pro|*ten-|t=to stretch]], through stretched, thin, weak or young.^(Etymonline) The d is unetymological.^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==

+ Soft, delicate, young and vulnerable: probably before 1200, in the ''Ancrene Riwle''.^(Barnhart 1988)^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Semantic evolution==

+ Kind, affectionate, loving, and easily pained, are from the late 13th century,^(Etymonline) and expressing sensitive feelings from about 1300.^(Etymonline) Of food, soft and easy to chew, it is from the mid-13th century,^(Etymonline) and of plants, not hardy, from the late 14th century.^(Etymonline) Susceptible to moral influence is 16th-century.^(Hoad 1986) Word Origins traces ''tender loving care'' to Shakespeare's ''Henry VI, Part 3'', and its abbreviation TLC to the 1940s.^(Cresswell 2021) ''Tender-hearted'' is from 1539 and ''tenderfoot'', a newcomer to pioneer life, American English from 1849.^(Barnhart 1988)

+

+ ==Timeline==

+ * before 1200 – soft, young.^(Barnhart 1988)

+ * mid-13th century – of food.^(Etymonline)

+ * late 13th century – affectionate.^(Etymonline)

+ * 1539 – tender-hearted.^(Barnhart 1988)

+ * 1849 – tenderfoot.^(Barnhart 1988)

+

+ ==Modern meaning==

+ ===Adjective===

+ # Easily cut or chewed; not tough: ''a tender steak''.^(AHD)^(Collins 2023)

+ # Painful when touched; [[sore]].^(AHD)

+ # Young and vulnerable: ''at a tender age''.^(AHD)^(Collins 2023)

+ # Gentle, kind and [[affectionate]].^(AHD)^(Collins 2023)

+ # Of plants, easily damaged by cold.^(AHD)

+

+ ===Verb===

+ # To make tender.^(AHD)

+

+ ==Word family==

+ * [[tenderly]]

+ * [[tenderness]]

+ * [[tenderize]]

+ * [[tender-hearted]]

+ * [[tenderfoot]]

+

+ {{homograph|2|offer}}

+

+ {{infobox|confidence=established|formation=borrowing|attested=c. 1400|origins=la tendo}}

+

+ ==Etymology==

+ It is Middle English tendren, [[bor|fro|tendre|t=to offer, hold forth]],^(Etymonline)^(Barnhart 1988)^(Hoad 1986) from Latin [[m|la|tendo|alt=tendere|t=to stretch, extend]] (see [[tend]]),^(Etymonline)^(Barnhart 1988) from PIE [[ine-pro|*ten-|t=to stretch]].^(Etymonline) The keeping of the French infinitive ending is unusual, compare [[render]].^(Etymonline)^(Barnhart 1988)

+

+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==

+ To offer formally, as a plea, oath or evidence, and especially money in payment: about 1400 in Etymonline,^(Etymonline) 1542–43 in Barnhart.^(Barnhart 1988)

+

+ ==Semantic evolution==

+ The noun, a formal offer, is also from 1542–43.^(Barnhart 1988) A written offer to supply goods or services at a stated price, a bid, is a commercial sense,^(AHD) and money offered in payment, as in ''legal tender'', a further one.^(AHD) A ''tender offer'' to buy a company's shares is American English from 1964.^(Barnhart 1988)

+

+ ==Timeline==

+ * c. 1400 – to offer formally.^(Etymonline)

+ * 1542–43 – the noun.^(Barnhart 1988)

+ * 1964 – tender offer.^(Barnhart 1988)

+

+ ==Modern meaning==

+ ===Verb===

+ # To offer formally: ''to tender one's resignation''.^(AHD)

+

+ ===Noun===

+ # A formal offer, especially a written bid to supply goods or services at a stated price.^(AHD)

+ # Money offered in payment: ''legal tender''.^(AHD)

+

+ ==Word family==

+ * [[legal tender]]

+

+ {{homograph|3|attendant, vessel}}

+

+ {{infobox|confidence=established|formation=derivation|attested=c. 1470}}

+

+ ==Etymology==

+ It is probably an agent noun formed from Middle English tenden, to attend to (see [[tend]]), and -er.^(Etymonline)^(Barnhart 1988)

+

+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==

+ One who tends another, an attendant or nurse: about 1470.^(Barnhart 1988)^(OED 1989)

+

+ ==Semantic evolution==

+ A vessel attending warships to supply provisions is from 1675 (the 1670s),^(Barnhart 1988)^(OED 1989)^(Etymonline) and a railway car carrying fuel and water for a steam locomotive from 1825.^(Barnhart 1988)^(OED 1989) One who looks after a machine or business, as in bartender (1836), is from 1825.^(Etymonline)^(OED 1989)

+

+ ==Timeline==

+ * c. 1470 – an attendant.^(Barnhart 1988)

+ * 1675 – a supply vessel.^(Barnhart 1988)

+ * 1825 – a locomotive tender.^(Barnhart 1988)

+ * 1836 – bartender.^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Modern meaning==

+ ===Noun===

+ # A person who looks after something: ''a bartender''.^(AHD)^(OED 1989)

+ # A boat that ferries supplies or passengers between a ship and the shore.^(AHD)^(OED 1989)

+ # A railway car behind a [[locomotive]] carrying fuel and water.^(AHD)^(OED 1989)

+

+ ==Word family==

+ * [[bartender]]

+

+ ==Related words==

+ * [[tend]]

+ * [[tense]]

+ * [[tension]]

+ * [[extend]]

+ * [[tenuous]]

+

+ ==References==

+ {{reflist}}