abecedary

English

Etymology

From Middle English abecedary, from Medieval Latin abecedarium (“alphabet, ABC primer”), from Late Latin abecedarius (“of the alphabet”), formed from the first four letters of the Latin alphabet + -arius.[1]

Pronunciation
  • (Received Pronunciation) IPA(key): /ˌeɪ.biː.ˈsiː.də.ɹi/
  • Audio (UK)(file)
  • (US) IPA(key): /ˌeɪ.bi.ˈsi.dɚ.i/, /ˌeɪ.bi.ˈsi.də.ɹi/

Noun

abecedary (plural abecedaries)

  1. (rare) The alphabet, written out in a teaching book, or carved on a wall; a primer; abecedarium. [from 1350 to 1470][1]
    • 2014 July 18, Caity Weaver, “My 14-Hour Search for the End of TGI Friday's Endless Appetizers”, in Gawker‎:
      I finish writing the alphabet on both napkins. There's room for more abecedaries, but […]
  2. One that teaches or learns the alphabet or the fundamentals of any subject; abecedarian. [from late 16th century][1]

Translations

Adjective

abecedary (not comparable)

  1. Referring to the alphabet; alphabetical; related to or resembling an abecedarius; abecedarian. [First attested from 1350 to 1470.][1]

References
  1. Lesley Brown, editor-in-chief; William R. Trumble and Angus Stevenson, editors (2002), “abecedary”, in The Shorter Oxford English Dictionary on Historical Principles, 5th edition, Oxford; New York, N.Y.: Oxford University Press, →ISBN, page 3.
This article is issued from Wiktionary. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.