fold English · revision 7957
16 Oct 2026, 14:48 by bogdan “en10k b0329: diameter … pale” current version
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+ Fold, to bend over, and fold, a pen for sheep, are separate Old English words.^(Etymonline)^(Barnhart 1988)^(Hoad 1986)
+
+ ==Pronunciation==
+ * IPA: /foʊld/; /ˈfəʊld/ ''(UK)''^(Wiktionary)
+
+ {{homograph|1|bend}}
+
+ {{infobox|confidence=established|formation=inherited|attested=before 899|origins=gem-pro *falþaną}}
+
+ ==Etymology==
+ It is Middle English folden, [[inh|ang|fealdan|t=to fold, wrap up]] (Mercian faldan),^(Etymonline)^(Barnhart 1988)^(Hoad 1986) from Proto-Germanic *falþan,^(Etymonline)^(Barnhart 1988)^(Hoad 1986) source also of Dutch [[m|nl|vouwen]], Old Norse falda, German [[m|de|falten]] and Gothic falþan,^(Etymonline)^(Barnhart 1988) which Watkins derives from PIE *pol-to-, from [[ine-pro|*pel-|t=to fold]].^(Etymonline)^(Hoad 1986) It is related to Latin plicāre, to fold (see [[ply]]).^(Hoad 1986)
+
+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==
+ To bend cloth back over itself: before 899, in Alfred's Boethius.^(Barnhart 1988)
+
+ ==Semantic evolution==
+ Of the arms, folded together, it is from late Old English.^(Etymonline) To give way or fail is from the mid-13th century,^(Etymonline) and to become doubled upon itself from about 1300.^(Etymonline) To yield to pressure is from the late 14th century.^(Etymonline) The noun, a bend or ply, is from the mid-13th century.^(Etymonline)^(Hoad 1986) Of a business, to close for lack of success, and in card games to withdraw, are later senses.^(AHD)^(Collins 2023) In geology a bend in a rock stratum is a technical sense.^(AHD)
+
+ ==Timeline==
+ * before 899 – to fold.^(Barnhart 1988)
+ * mid-13th century – a fold; to fail.^(Etymonline)
+ * c. 1300 – to become doubled.^(Etymonline)
+ * late 14th century – to yield.^(Etymonline)
+
+ ==Modern meaning==
+ ===Verb===
+ # To bend something over so that one part lies on another.^(AHD)^(Collins 2023)
+ # To bring the arms or hands together; to close wings.^(AHD)^(Collins 2023)
+ # To wrap or enclose.^(Collins 2023)
+ # ''(informal)'' Of a business, to close; to [[fail]].^(AHD)
+ # To give in or collapse.^(AHD)
+
+ ===Noun===
+ # A part folded over, or a crease made by folding.^(AHD)
+ # A bend in a [[stratum]] of rock.^(AHD)
+ # A hill or hollow in undulating country.^(AHD)
+
+ ==Word family==
+ * [[folder]]
+ * [[folding]]
+ * [[unfold]]
+ * [[-fold]]
+
+ {{homograph|2|pen}}
+
+ {{infobox|confidence=unknown|formation=inherited|attested=before 700}}
+
+ ==Etymology==
+ It is [[inh|ang|falod|t=stall, cattle-pen]], falæd, fald,^(Etymonline)^(Barnhart 1988)^(Hoad 1986)^(MWU 2024) a general Germanic word, cognate with Old Saxon faled, Middle Low German vālt, enclosure, dunghill, and Dutch vaalt, dunghill,^(Etymonline)^(Barnhart 1988) of unknown origin.^(Barnhart 1988)^(Etymonline)
+
+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==
+ A pen for domestic animals, especially sheep: before 700.^(Barnhart 1988)^(OED 1989)
+
+ ==Semantic evolution==
+ Figurative use, especially of the Church as a fold of Christ's sheep, is from the mid-14th century (1340).^(Etymonline)^(OED 1989) The sheep contained in a fold are from 1669.^(OED 1989) The verb, to shut up in a fold, is Old English faldian.^(Hoad 1986)
+
+ ==Timeline==
+ * before 700 – a sheepfold.^(Barnhart 1988)
+ * 1340 – figurative, the Church.^(OED 1989)
+ * 1669 – the flock.^(OED 1989)
+
+ ==Modern meaning==
+ ===Noun===
+ # A fenced enclosure for [[sheep]] or other animals.^(AHD)
+ # A group of people sharing beliefs, such as a church congregation: ''return to the fold''.^(AHD)
+
+ ===Verb===
+ # To put or keep sheep in a fold.^(AHD)
+
+ ==Word family==
+ * [[sheepfold]]
+
+ ==Related words==
+ * [[ply]]
+ * [[plait]]
+ * [[multiply]]
+
+ ==References==
+ {{reflist}}