dorință

Forms

dorință f (plural dorințe)^[1]

Etymology

It is formed from Romanian dori + -ință.^{[2][3][4][5][1]} The verb is a derivative of dor “longing”, which is inherited from Late Latin dolus (“pain”), a back-formation from Latin doleō (“to hurt”).^[6][4] Gabinschi allows a second possibility, an inherited Latin dolentia (“pain, suffering”).^[7]

Earliest recorded meaning

DELR dates the first record to 1682, in Dosoftei, an abstract noun beside the verb.^[4] Antim Ivireanu uses it in the early 18th century, and Tiktin's first record is Budai-Deleanu's, of 1800.^[8][5]

Semantic evolution

The word is the abstract noun of dori, and its senses follow the verb's: the longing for something, then the thing wished for.^[2][3] The narrower senses “appetite for food or drink” and “erotic desire” are recorded in the 19th-century literary language.^[2][9] MDA2 also gives a rare sense “good wish, greeting”.^[3]

Timeline

• 1682 – dorință in Dosoftei, the first record, the same year as doritor.^[4]
• 1800 – in Budai-Deleanu.^[5]

Meanings

Noun

1. desire, longing: the state of mind of someone who aspires to something.^[2][3]
2. What someone longs for, a wish: I s-a împlinit dorința. “Her wish came true.”^[2][1]
3. appetite, taste (for food or drink); will.^[2][3]
4. Erotic attraction.^[2][3]
5. (rare) A good wish, a greeting.^[3]

Related words

• dor
• dori
• doritor
• dornic
• doleanță

Usage notes

Besides the usual plural dorințe there is a plural dorinți.^[2][3]

References

1. ^ a b c d Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ 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. 328
3. ^ a b c d e f g h Academia Română, Institutul de Lingvistică „Iorgu Iordan – Al. Rosetti” (2010), Micul dicționar academic, 2nd ed., 4 vols., București: Univers Enciclopedic Gold, p. 1, 747
4. ^ a b c d 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. dor
5. ^ a b c Tiktin, Hariton (2000–2005), Rumänisch-deutsches Wörterbuch, 3rd ed., revised by Paul Miron and Elsa Lüder, 3 vols., Cluj-Napoca: Clusium, p. s.v. dorință
6. ^ 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. dor
7. ^ Gabinschi, Marcu (2001), Dicționar de dublete etimologice ale limbii române, 2nd ed., Chișinău: Litera
8. ^ Academia Română (1965–2010), Dicționarul limbii române (DLR), serie nouă, tom I–XIX, București: Editura Academiei Române, p. s.v. dorință
9. ^ Macrea, Dimitrie; Petrovici, Emil (coord.) (1955–1957), Dicționarul limbii romîne literare contemporane, 4 vols., București: Editura Academiei Republicii Populare Romîne, p. 2, 154