bășica

Forms

bășica (third-person singular present bășică, past participle bășicat), 1st conjugation^[1][2] Moldavia and Transylvania also have beșica.^[3][2]

Etymology

It is inherited from Vulgar Latin *vessīcō (“to blister”), a verb on vessīca (“bladder, blister”).^{[4][5][6][3][7]} DELR names this origin first, citing Densusianu, Pușcariu, Candrea and Densusianu, the REW and CADE, and notes the form vesicare recorded in Priscian.^[4][8] Its Romance cognates are Italian vescicare, Old French vescier and Occitan vessigar, and a compound Spanish avejigar.^[4][7][8] The verb also survives in Aromanian bishic.^[4][1]

Scriban, DLRM and DEX instead derive it within Romanian, from Romanian bășică + -a, and Ciorănescu allows both.^{[4][2][9][10]}

Earliest recorded meaning

DELR's first record is in Coresi's Pravila of 1560–1561.^[4] Tiktin's first is from 1642.^[3]

Semantic evolution

The verb means to raise blisters on the skin, and reflexively to be covered with them.^[6][2] A spring custom of St George's Day, the 23rd of April, was to blister one another with nettles, a se bășica cu urzici.^[3] From the blistered body came the popular figurative sense “to beat hard”: acum te bășic “now I'll thrash you”.^[6][11] Plaster and walls that flake are said to se bășica as well.^[11][12] In slang the reflexive is used for “to get angry, take offence”, recorded in the press from 1998.^[13][14][4]

Timeline

• 1560–1561 – the first record, in Coresi's Pravila.^[4]
• 1642 – the first record Tiktin cites.^[3]
• 17th century – the adjective bășicat “swollen like a blister; blistered” in the Palia istorică.^[4]
• second half of the 18th century – bășicătură in a medical text.^[4]
• 1931 – the noun bășicat “blistering” in CADE.^[4]
• 1998 – the slang reflexive “to get angry” in the press.^[13]

Meanings

Verb

1. (transitive and reflexive) To raise blisters on; to become covered with blisters.^[2][11][1]
2. (transitive, figurative, popular) To beat someone hard.^[11][6]
3. (reflexive, of plaster, walls) To bubble and flake.^[11][12]
4. (reflexive, slang) To get angry, to take offence.^[14][13]

Word family

• bășicat
• bășicătură
• bășicățel

Related words

• bășică
• Aromanian bishic

References

1. ^ a b c Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e DEX (2009), Dicționarul explicativ al limbii române [Explanatory dictionary of the Romanian language], Bucharest: Editura Univers Enciclopedic, p. 1, 96
3. ^ a b c d e Tiktin, Hariton (2000–2005), Rumänisch-deutsches Wörterbuch, 3rd ed., revised by Paul Miron and Elsa Lüder, 3 vols., Cluj-Napoca: Clusium, p. s.v. bășica
4. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k 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. bășică
5. ^ Academia Română, Institutul de Lingvistică „Iorgu Iordan – Al. Rosetti” (2010), Micul dicționar academic, 2nd ed., 4 vols., București: Univers Enciclopedic Gold
6. ^ a b c d 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. bășica
7. ^ a b Meyer-Lübke, Wilhelm (1935), Romanisches etymologisches Wörterbuch, 3rd ed., Heidelberg: Winter
8. ^ a b Candrea, I.-A.; Densusianu, Ov. (1907–1914), Dicționarul etimologic al limbii române: elementele latine (A–Putea), București, p. 142
9. ^ Academia Republicii Populare Romîne (1958), Dicționarul limbii romîne moderne, București: Editura Academiei Republicii Populare Romîne, p. 1, 74
10. ^ 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. bășică
11. ^ a b c d e Academia Română, Institutul de Lingvistică „Iorgu Iordan – Al. Rosetti” (2010), Micul dicționar academic, 2nd ed., 4 vols., București: Univers Enciclopedic Gold, p. 1, 186
12. ^ a b Dima, Eugenia (coord.) (2007), Dicționar explicativ ilustrat al limbii române, Chișinău: Arc / Gunivas, p. s.v. bășica
13. ^ a b c Dimitrescu, Florica (1997), Dicționar de cuvinte recente, 2nd ed., București: Logos (with the 3rd ed., 2013, in CLRE), p. s.v. bășica
14. ^ a b Volceanov, George (2007), Dicționar de argou al limbii române, București: Niculescu, p. s.v. bășica