înțina

Forms

înțina (third-person singular present înținează, past participle înținat), 1st conjugation^[1]

Etymology

It is inherited from Vulgar Latin *intenuō (“to make thin”), formed on tenuō (“to make thin, weaken”).^[2][3][4] Ciorănescu, following Tiktin, Candrea–Densusianu, the REW, the DAR and Rosetti, gives the plain Latin verb as the source.^[5][6] Tiktin calls this source probable.^[7] Wiktionary describes the word as the Latin verb with the Romanian prefix în-.^[1] The Latin verb comes from tenuis (“thin, weak, fine”).^[1][8]

The DA compares ațină and refers to Pușcariu's article in Wörter und Sachen (vol. 1, pp. 111–114).^[2] The REW, after Pușcariu, lists the participle înținat in phrases for a tree that threatens to fall and for a quarrelsome, stubborn man.^[6]

Earliest recorded meaning

The first record is in Grigore Ureche's chronicle of Moldavia, from about 1640: Stephen the Great sent men ahead to cut the forest by the Cozmin road, „să taie pădurea, să o înțineze, ca să o poată porni să cază asupra oștii” “to cut the forest, to cut the trees nearly through, so that they could make it fall upon the army”.^[7][2] The sense there is the military one: trees sawn almost through, so that they still stand but can be brought down at once.^[9][5]

Semantic evolution

From trees cut nearly through, the verb came to mean leaving any object in an unstable balance, by narrowing its base or support: to prop something up weakly, so that it could fall easily, or to leave a door ajar.^[5][4][9] It was also said of building something flimsy.^[4] The reflexive meant to stand upright with difficulty, and figuratively to give oneself airs or to be obstinate.^[4][2]

The DA records it in Moldavia, Bucovina, the Banat and parts of Transylvania, and marks the military sense as old.^[2] Ciorănescu notes that the full conjugation is old: today mostly the participle înținat is used, as an adjective.^[5]

Timeline

• c. 1640 – înțineze in Grigore Ureche's chronicle, the first record.^[7]

Meanings

Verb

1. (regional, transitive) To prop up weakly, so that the thing can fall easily.^[3][4]
2. (regional, transitive) To cut a tree not quite through, so that it still stands but is easy to bring down.^[5][4][1]
3. (regional, transitive) To leave a door ajar.^[4][9]
4. (regional, transitive) To build or mend something flimsy.^[4]
5. (regional, reflexive) To stand upright with difficulty; figuratively, to boast or to be obstinate.^[4][2]

Related words

• ațină

Usage notes

Tiktin and CADE also record the form înțâna, and MDA2 a regional present înțin beside înținez.^[7][10][4]

References

1. ^ a b c d Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f Academia Română (1913–1949), Dicționarul limbii române (DA), ed. Sextil Pușcariu, tom I (A–B, C, D–De) and tom II (F–I, J–Lojniță), București: Socec / Universul / Monitorul Oficial și Imprimeriile Statului; page scans at cflr-scans.solirom.ro, p. s.v. înțina
3. ^ a b DEX (2009), Dicționarul explicativ al limbii române [Explanatory dictionary of the Romanian language], Bucharest: Editura Univers Enciclopedic, p. 559
4. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Academia Română, Institutul de Lingvistică „Iorgu Iordan – Al. Rosetti” (2010), Micul dicționar academic, 2nd ed., 4 vols., București: Univers Enciclopedic Gold, p. 1, 1264
5. ^ a b c d e Ciorănescu, Alexandru (1958–1966), Diccionario etimológico rumano, La Laguna: Universidad de La Laguna (Romanian ed.: Dicționarul etimologic al limbii române, București: Saeculum, 2001), p. s.v. înțina
6. ^ a b Meyer-Lübke, Wilhelm (1935), Romanisches etymologisches Wörterbuch, 3rd ed., Heidelberg: Winter, p. 8654
7. ^ a b c d Tiktin, Hariton (2000–2005), Rumänisch-deutsches Wörterbuch, 3rd ed., revised by Paul Miron and Elsa Lüder, 3 vols., Cluj-Napoca: Clusium, p. s.v. înțina
8. ^ Glare, P. G. W., ed. (2012), Oxford Latin Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
9. ^ a b c Bulgăr, Gheorghe; Constantinescu-Dobridor, Gheorghe (2002), Dicționar de arhaisme și regionalisme, 2 vols., București: Saeculum Vizual, p. s.v. înțina
10. ^ Candrea, I.-A.; Adamescu, Gh. (1926–1931), Dicționarul enciclopedic ilustrat „Cartea Românească”, București: Cartea Românească, p. s.v. înțina