merry

merry
merry (adj.) O.E. myrge "pleasing, agreeable, pleasant, sweet; pleasantly, melodiously," from P.Gmc. *murgijaz, which probably originally meant "short-lasting," (Cf. O.H.G. murg "short," Goth. gamaurgjan "to shorten"), from PIE *mreghu- "short" (see BRIEF (Cf. brief) (adj.)). The only exact cognate for meaning outside English was M.Du. mergelijc "joyful."
Connection to "pleasure" is likely via notion of "making time fly, that which makes the time seem to pass quickly" (Cf. Ger. Kurzweil "pastime," lit. "a short time;" O.N. skemta "to amuse, entertain, amuse oneself," from skamt, neuter of skammr "short"). There also was a verbal form in Old English, myrgan "be merry, rejoice." For vowel evolution, see BURY (Cf. bury).
Bot vchon enle we wolde were fyf, þe mo þe myryer. [c.1300]
The word had much wider senses in Middle English, e.g. "pleasant-sounding" (of animal voices), "fine" (of weather), "handsome" (of dress), "pleasant-tasting" (of herbs). Merry-bout "an incident of sexual intercourse" was low slang from 1780. Merry-begot "illegitimate" (adj.), "bastard" (n.) is from 1785. Merrie England (now frequently satirical or ironic) is 14c. meri ingland, originally in a broader sense of "bountiful, prosperous." Merry Monday was a 16c. term for "the Monday before Shrove Tuesday" (Mardi Gras).

Etymology dictionary. 2014.

Игры ⚽ Нужно решить контрольную?
Synonyms:

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Merry — (engl.) bedeutet „fröhlich“, „lustig“, „scherzhaft“, „heiter“. Merry ist der Familienname folgender Personen: Alfonso Merry del Val y Zulueta (1864–1943), spanischer Diplomat Domingo Merry del Val y Zulueta (1866–1935), spanischer… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Merry — Mer ry, a. [Compar. {Merrier}; superl. {Merriest}.] [OE. merie, mirie, murie, merry, pleasant, AS. merge, myrige, pleasant; cf. murge, adv.; prob. akin to OHG. murg, short, Goth. gama[ u]rgjan to shorten; cf. L. murcus a coward, who cuts off his… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Merry — may refer to: Happy Alcohol intoxication Merry (surname) Merry (EP), an EP by Gregory Douglass Merry (song), a song by American power pop band Magnapop Meriadoc Brandybuck, from The Lord of the Rings Merry Pemberton, from various DC Comics Merry… …   Wikipedia

  • merry — merry, blithe, jocund, jovial, jolly mean indicating or showing high spirits or lightheartedness often in play and laughter. Merry implies a gay, cheerful temper or mood and uninhibited enjoyment of frolic, festivity, or fun of any sort {a… …   New Dictionary of Synonyms

  • Merry (EP) — Merry EP by Gregory Douglass Released November 2009 Genre Indie rock, acoustic, rock, holiday …   Wikipedia

  • Merry — f English: originally apparently an assimilated form of MERCY (SEE Mercy). In Dickens s novel Martin Chuzzlewit (1844), Mr Pecksniff s daughters CHARITY (SEE Charity) and Mercy are known as Cherry and Merry. Nowadays the name is usually bestow …   First names dictionary

  • merry — ► ADJECTIVE (merrier, merriest) 1) cheerful and lively. 2) Brit. informal slightly drunk. ● make merry Cf. ↑make merry DERIVATIVES merrily a …   English terms dictionary

  • merry — [mer′ē] adj. merrier, merriest [ME mery < OE myrge, pleasing, agreeable, akin to OHG murgi, short < IE base * mreĝhu , *mrĝhu , short > Gr brachys, L brevis, short: basic sense “lasting a short time, seeming brief”] 1. full of fun and… …   English World dictionary

  • Merry — Mer ry (m[e^]r r[y^]), n. (Bot.) A kind of wild red cherry. [1913 Webster] …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • merry — index jocular Burton s Legal Thesaurus. William C. Burton. 2006 …   Law dictionary

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”