hermit English · revision 779

+ ==Pronunciation==

+ * IPA: /ˈhɜːmɪt/ ''(UK)''; /ˈhɝmɪt/ ''(US)''^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Etymology==

+ It is [[inh|enm|heremite]], ''ermite'',^(AHD)^(Barnhart 1995)^(MW Collegiate)^(Hoad 1986) [[bor|fro|hermite]], ''ermite'',^(AHD)^(Barnhart 1995)^(Etymonline)^(MW Collegiate)^(Hoad 1986) [[der|la-lat|erēmīta]] (Medieval Latin ''herēmīta''),^(AHD)^(Barnhart 1995)^(Etymonline)^(MW Collegiate)^(Hoad 1986) [[der|grc|ἐρημίτης|tr=erēmítēs|t=person of the desert]],^(AHD)^(Barnhart 1995)^(Etymonline)^(MW Collegiate)^(Hoad 1986) from ''erēmía'' “desert, solitude”, from ''érēmos'' “solitary, uninhabited”.^(AHD)^(Barnhart 1995)^(Etymonline)^(MW Collegiate)^(Hoad 1986) The unetymological ''h-'' first appeared in Medieval Latin.^(Etymonline) It is a doublet of [[eremite]].^(OED 1989)

+

+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==

+ A religious recluse who lives alone in a solitary place for meditation (1196 in Barnhart; early 12th century in Etymonline; c. 1205 in the OED).^(Barnhart 1995)^(Etymonline)^(OED 1989)

+

+ ==Semantic evolution==

+ The early Christian hermits withdrew to the desert, hence the name.^(OED 1989)^(Etymonline) The word was also used in the names of monastic orders, such as the Hermits of St Augustine (1577–87), and of a beadsman (1588, obsolete) and a vagabond (1495).^(OED 1989) The general sense, any person living in solitude, dates from 1799.^(Etymonline)^(OED 1989) From 1661 it was applied to animals of solitary habits,^(OED 1989) as the ''hermit crab'' (1735).^(Etymonline) In American use a ''hermit'' is also a spiced molasses cookie.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)^(RHWU) ''Hermitage'' dates from about 1300.^(Barnhart 1995)

+

+ ==Timeline==

+ * about 1130 – in the place name ''Bechermet''.^(Barnhart 1995)

+ * 1196 – ''heremite'', a religious recluse.^(Barnhart 1995)

+ * about 1300 – ''hermitage''.^(Barnhart 1995)

+ * 1735 – ''hermit crab''.^(Etymonline)

+ * 1799 – any person living in solitude.^(OED 1989)^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Modern meaning==

+ ===Noun===

+ # A person who has withdrawn from society to live in solitude, especially for religious reasons; a [[recluse]].^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)^(RHWU)^(Wiktionary)

+ # An animal of solitary habits, or a [[hermit crab]].^(RHWU)^(Wiktionary)^(OED 1989)

+ # A spiced molasses cookie, often with raisins or nuts.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)^(RHWU)^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Word family==

+ * [[hermitic]]

+ * [[hermitically]]

+ * [[hermitism]]

+ * [[hermitlike]]

+ * [[hermitry]]

+ * [[hermitage]]

+ * [[hermit crab]]

+ * [[hermit kingdom]]

+

+ ==Related words==

+ * [[eremite]]

+ * [[anchorite]]

+ * [[recluse]]

+

+ ==References==

+ {{reflist}}