abuz

Forms

abuz n (plural abuzuri)^[1] In the Moldovan Cyrillic alphabet the word was written абуз.^[1]

Etymology

It is borrowed from French abus and a learned borrowed from Latin abūsus (“misuse, wasting”).^[2][3][4][5] Tiktin and Wiktionary give French alone,^[6][1] Scriban Latin alone.^[7]

The Latin noun is the action noun of abūtor (“to use up, to misuse”), formed from Latin ab- + ūtor (“to use”).^[2][8][1] French borrowed the Latin legal term in 1370.^[9] Scriban refers the word to uz “use”.^[7]

Earliest recorded meaning

DELR dates the first record to 1800, in a work of Ioan Piuariu-Molnar, with the sense of excessive or unlawful use of something.^[2] Tiktin's first date is 1829.^[6] MDA2 and the DA begin with Titu Maiorescu's parliamentary speeches (from 1866): „Un guvern prin prea mult uz sau abuz al puterii sale ajunge a nu mai fi necesar țării sale” “a government, by too much use or abuse of its power, comes to be no longer needed by its country”.^[10][4]

Semantic evolution

Negulici's dictionary of 1848 defined the word, written in Cyrillic абꙋс, as bad or excessive use of something and as an act against good order and justice.^[11] The legal phrases followed: abuz de putere “abuse of power” and abuz de încredere “breach of trust”, which Tiktin and the DA record,^[6][10] and later abuz de drept “abuse of right”.^[3] The DEX adds a rare sense, an error of exaggerating a fact or an opinion.^[3]

DELR dates the derivatives: abuziv “abusive” from 1832, in the Organic Regulation of Wallachia, taken from French abusif; and the verb abuza from 1847, from French abuser, whose recent transitive sense “to maltreat (a vulnerable person)” follows English abuse.^[2]

Timeline

• 1800 – first record, in Ioan Piuariu-Molnar.^[2]
• 1829 – the next date given by Tiktin.^[6]
• 1832 – the adjective abuziv in the Organic Regulation.^[2]
• 1847 – the verb abuza.^[2]
• 1848 – in Negulici's dictionary of neologisms.^[11]
• 1866 on – in Maiorescu's parliamentary speeches.^[4][10]

Meanings

Noun

1. A breach of legality;^[3][4] (concrete) an unlawful act: abuz de putere “abuse of power”, abuz de încredere “breach of trust”, abuz de drept “abuse of right”.^[3][4]
2. Use without measure, excess: abuz de alcool;^[3][4][12] prin abuz “abusively”.^[3][4][12]
3. (rare) An error of exaggerating a fact or an opinion.^[3]

Word family

• abuza
• abuziv

Related words

• uz

References

1. ^ a b c d e Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f g Academia Română, Institutul de Lingvistică „Iorgu Iordan – Al. Rosetti” (2011–), Dicționarul etimologic al limbii române (DELR), vol. I: A–B (2011), vol. II: C (2015–2018), București: Editura Academiei Române; continued online at delr.lingv.ro, p. s.v. abuz
3. ^ a b c d e f g h DEX (2009), Dicționarul explicativ al limbii române [Explanatory dictionary of the Romanian language], Bucharest: Editura Univers Enciclopedic, p. 4
4. ^ a b c d e f g Academia Română, Institutul de Lingvistică „Iorgu Iordan – Al. Rosetti” (2010), Micul dicționar academic, 2nd ed., 4 vols., București: Univers Enciclopedic Gold, p. 1, 5
5. ^ Marcu, Florin; Maneca, Constant (1986), Dicționar de neologisme, 3rd ed., București: Editura Academiei Republicii Socialiste România
6. ^ 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. abuz
7. ^ a b Scriban, August (1939), Dicționaru limbii românești (etimologii, înțelesuri, exemple, citațiuni, arhaizme, neologizme, provincializme), Iași: Presa Bună
8. ^ Glare, P. G. W., ed. (2012), Oxford Latin Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
9. ^ Rey, Alain, ed. (1992), Dictionnaire historique de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
10. ^ a b c 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. abuz
11. ^ a b Negulici, I. D. (1848), Vocabular romînesc de toate vorbele streine întroduse pînă acum în limba romînească și de toate cuvintele ce s-ar mai putea introduce încă, București, p. s.v. abuz
12. ^ a b Macrea, Dimitrie; Petrovici, Emil (coord.) (1955–1957), Dicționarul limbii romîne literare contemporane, 4 vols., București: Editura Academiei Republicii Populare Romîne