beetle English · revision 973

+ ==Pronunciation==

+ * IPA: /ˈbiːtəl/^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Etymology==

+ The insect name is [[inh|enm|bitil]], [[inh|ang|bitela]],^(AHD)^(Barnhart 1995)^(Etymonline)^(MW Collegiate)^(RHWU) apparently “little biter”, from ''bītan'' “to bite”.^(AHD)^(Barnhart 1995)^(Etymonline)^(MW Collegiate)^(RHWU) The mallet word is [[inh|enm|betel]], [[inh|ang|bīetel]], related to ''bēatan'' “to beat”.^(AHD)^(Etymonline)^(MW Collegiate)^(RHWU) The adjective and verb “jutting” come from ''beetle-browed'', [[enm|bitelbrowed]], in which ''bitel'' meant “sharp”.^(AHD)^(Barnhart 1995)^(Etymonline)^(MW Collegiate)

+

+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==

+ The coleopterous insect (before 800);^(OED 1989)^(Barnhart 1995) the mallet (c. 897).^(OED 1989)

+

+ ==Semantic evolution==

+ By normal development the insect's name would have become ''*bittle'', but it seems to have been influenced by the mallet word.^(Etymonline) Shakespeare's ''Hamlet'' (1602) has the verb ''beetle'' “to overhang”, apparently a back-formation from ''beetle-browed'' “with prominent brows”.^(Etymonline)^(Barnhart 1995)^(OED 1989) The informal British verb “to scurry like a beetle” dates from 1919,^(OED 1989)^(MW Collegiate) and the original Volkswagen car was nicknamed the ''Beetle'' (1946), translating German ''Käfer''.^(OED 1989)^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Timeline==

+ * before 800 – the insect.^(OED 1989)^(Barnhart 1995)

+ * c. 897 – a heavy mallet.^(OED 1989)

+ * before 1376 – ''beetle-browed''.^(Barnhart 1995)

+ * 1602 – verb, to overhang, jut.^(OED 1989)^(Barnhart 1995)^(Etymonline)^(MW Collegiate)

+ * 1919 – verb, to scurry.^(OED 1989)^(MW Collegiate)

+ * 1946 – the Volkswagen Beetle.^(OED 1989)^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Modern meaning==

+ ===Noun===

+ # Any of numerous [[insect|alt=insects]] of the order Coleoptera, with biting mouthparts and hard forewings that cover and protect the hind wings at rest.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)^(RHWU)^(Wiktionary)

+ # An insect resembling a true beetle, such as a [[cockroach]].^(AHD)^(RHWU)

+ # A heavy wooden [[mallet]] for driving wedges or ramming; also, a machine for beating cloth.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)^(RHWU)^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ===Verb===

+ # ''(chiefly British)'' To move quickly; to scurry.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)^(RHWU)^(Wiktionary)

+ # To project or overhang, as in ''beetling cliffs''.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)^(RHWU)^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ===Adjective===

+ # Jutting or overhanging, as in ''beetle brows''.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)^(RHWU)^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Word family==

+ * [[beetler]]

+

+ ==Related words==

+ * [[bite]]

+ * [[beat]]

+ * [[scarab]]

+ * [[weevil]]

+

+ ==References==

+ {{reflist}}