KEY TO THE GENERAL PLAN OF THE ETYMOLOGICAL DICTIONARY

The general contents of each article are, as far as seemed advisable, arranged in a uniform order, and the following scheme will explain the nature of the information to be found in this work.

1. The words selected. The Word-list contains all the primary words of most frequent occurrence in modern (1883) literature; and, when their derivatives are included, supplies a tolerably complete vocabulary of the language. I have been chiefly guided in this matter by the well-arranged work known as Chambers's Etymological Dictionary of the English Language, edited by James Donald, F.R.G.S. A few unusual words have been included on account of their occurrence in familiar passages of standard authors.

2. The Definitions. These are given in the briefest possible form, chiefly for the purpose of identifying the word and shewing the part of speech.

3. The Language. The language to which each word belongs is distinctly marked in every case, by means of letters within marks of parenthesis immediately following the definition. In the case of words derived from French, a note is (in general) also made as to whether the French word is of Latin, Celtic, German, or Scandinavian origin. The symbol [—] signifies 'derived from.' Thus the remark '(F.,—L.)' signifies 'a word introduced into English from French, the French word itself being of Latin origin.' The letters used are to be read as follows.
        Arab. = Arabic.  C. = Celtic, used as a general term for Irish, Gaelic, Welsh, Breton, Cornish, &c.  E. = English.  F. = French.  G. = German.  Gk. = Greek.  L. or Lat. = Latin.  Scand. = Scandinavian, used as a general term for Icelandic, Swedish, Danish, &c.  W. = Welsh.
        For other abbreviations, see § 7 below.

4. The History. Next follows a brief account of the history of the word, shewing (approximately) the time of its introduction into the language; or, if a native word, the Middle-English form or forms of it, with a few quotations and references. This is an important feature of the work, and (I believe) to some extent a new one. In attempting thus, as it were, to date each word, I must premise that I often cite Shakespeare in preference to a slightly earlier writer whose writings are less familiar; that an attempt has nevertheless been made to indicate the date within (at least) a century; and lastly, that in some cases I may have failed to do this, owing to imperfect information or knowledge. In general, sufficient is said, in a very brief space, to establish the earlier uses of each word, so as to clear the way for a correct notion of its origin.

5. The References. A large number of the references are from Richardson's Dictionary, denoted by the symbol '(R.)' Some from Todd's Johnson, sometimes cited merely as 'Todd.' Many from Stratmann's Old English Dictionary, or the still better (but unfinished) work by Mätzner; these are all 'M. E.,' i.e. Middle-English forms. Many others are due to my own reading. I have, in very many instances, given exact references, often at the expenditure of much time and trouble. Thus Richardson cites 'The Romaunt of the Rose' at large, but I have given, in almost every case, the exact number of the line. Similarly, he cites the Fairy Queen merely by the book and canto, omitting the stanza. Inexact quotations are comparatively valueless, as they cannot be verified, and may be false.

6. The Etymology. Except in a few cases where the etymology is verbally described, the account of it begins with the symbol —, which is always to be read as 'directly derived from,' or 'borrowed from,' wherever it occurs. A succession of these symbols occurs whenever the etymology is traced back through another gradation. The order is always upward, from old to still older forms.

7. Cognate Forms. Cognate forms are frequently introduced by way of further illustration, though they form, strictly speaking, no part of the direct history of the etymology. But they frequently throw so much light upon the word that it has always been usual to cite them; though no error is more common than to mistake a word that is merely cognate with, or allied to, the English one for the very original of it! For example, many people will quote the German word acker as if it accounted for, or is the original of the English acre, whereas it is (like the Lat. ager, or the Icelandic akr), merely a parallel form. It is remarkable that many beginners are accustomed to cite German words in particular (probably as being the only continental-Teutonic idiom with which they are acquainted) in order to account for English words; the fact being that no Teutonic language has contributed so little to our own tongue, which is, in the main, a Low-German dialect as distinguished from that High-German one to which the specific name 'German' is commonly applied. In order to guard the learner from this error of confusing cognate words with such as are immediately concerned with the etymology, the symbol + is used to distinguish such words. This symbol is, in every case, to be read as 'not derived from, but cognate with.' The symbol has, in fact, its usual algebraical value, i.e. plus, or additional; and indicates additional information to be obtained from the comparison of cognate forms.

8. Symbols and Etymological References. The symbols used are such as to furnish, in every case, an exact reference to some authority. Thus the symbol 'Ital.' does not mean merely Italian, but that the word has actually been verified by myself (and may be verified by any one else) as occurring in Meadow's Italian Dictionary. This is an important point, as it is common to cite foreign words at random, without the slightest hint as to where they may be found; a habit which leads to false spellings and even to gross blunders. And, in order that the student may the more easily verify these words, (as well as to curb myself from citing words of unusual occurrence) I have expressly preferred to use common and cheap dictionaries, or such as came most readily to hand, except where I refer by name to such excellent books as Rietz's Svenskt Dialekt-Lexicon. The following is a list of these symbols, with their exact significations.
        A.S.—Anglo-Saxon, or native English in its earliest form. The references are to Grein, Bosworth, or Lye, as cited; or to some A.S. work, as cited. All these words are authorized, unless the contrary is said. The absurd forms in Somner's Dictionary, cited ad nauseam by our Dictionary-makers, have been rejected as valueless.
        Bret.—Breton; as in Legonidec's Dictionary, ed. 1821.
        Corn.—Cornish; as in Williams's Dictionary, ed. 1865.
        Dan.—Danish; as in Ferrall and Repp's Dictionary, ed. 1861.
        Du.—Dutch; as in the Tauchnitz stereotyped edition.
        E.—Modern English; see Webster's English Dictionary, ed. Goodrich and Porter.
        F.—French, as in the Dict. by Hamilton and Legros. The reference 'Cot.' is to Cotgrave's French Dictionary, ed. 1660. The reference 'Brachet' is to the English translation of Brachet's French Etym. Dict. in the Clarendon Press Series. Wherever O.F. (= Old French) occurs, the reference is to Burguy's Glossaire, unless the contrary be expressly stated, in which case it is (in general) to Cot. (Cotgrave) or to Roquefort.
        Gael.—Gaelic; as in Macleod and Dewar's Dictioanry, ed. 1839.
        G.—German; as in Flügel's Dictionary, ed. 1849.
        Gk.—Greek; as in Liddell and Scott's Lexicon, ed. 1849.
        Goth.—Moeso-Gothic; as in Skeat's Mœso-Gothic Glossary, ed. 1868.
        Heb.—Hebrew; as in Leopold's small Hebrew Dictionary, ed. 1872.
        Icel.—Icelandic; as in Cleasby and Vigfusson's Icelandic Dictionary, ed. 1874.
        Ir. or Irish.—Irish; as in O'Reilly's Dictionary, ed. 1864.
        Ital.—Italian; as in Meadows's Dictionary, ed. 1857.
        L. or Lat.—Latin; as in White and Riddle's Dictionary, 5th ed., 1876.
        Low Lat.—Low Latin; as in the Lexicon Manuale, by Maigne d'Arnis, ed. 1866.
        M. E.—Middle English; i.e. English from about A.D. 1200 to about A.D. 1500. See § 5 above.
        M. H. G.—Middle High German; as in Wackernagel's Wörterbuch, ed. 1861.
        O. F.—Old French; as in Burguy's Glossaire, ed. 1870.
        O. H. G.—Old High German; chiefly from Wackernagel; see M. H. G. above.
        Pers.—Persian; as in Palmer's Persian Dictionary, ed. 1857.
        Port.—Portuguese; as in Vieyra's Dictionary, ed. 1857.
        Prov.—Provençal; as in Raynouard's Lexique Roman (so called).
        Russ.—Russian; as in Heym's Dict. of Russian, German, and French, ed. 1844.
        Skt.—Sanskrit; as in Benfey's Dictionary, ed. 1866.
        Span.—Spanish; as in Meadows's Dictionary, ed. 1856.
        Swed.—Swedish; as in the Tuchnitz stereotyped edition.
        W.—Welsh; as in Spurrell's Dictionary, ed. 1861.
        For a complete list of authorities, see the Preface. The above includes only such as have been used too frequently to admit of special reference to them by name.
        Other abbreviations.  Such abbreviations as 'adj.' = adjective; 'pl.' = plural, and the like, will be readily understood. I may particularly mention the following. Cf. = confer, i.e. compare; pt. t. = past tense; pp. = past participle; q.v. = quod vide, i.e. which see; s.v. = sub verbo, i.e. under the word in question; tr. = translation, or translated; b. = book; c. (or ch., or cap.) = chapter; sometimes = canto; l. = line; s. = section; st. = stanza; A.V. = Authorised Version of the Bible (1611).

9. The Roots.  In some cases, the words have been traced back to their original Aryan roots. This has only been attempted, for the most part, in cases where the subject scarcely admits of a doubt; it being unadvisable to hazard many guesses, in the present state of our knowledge. The root is denoted by the symbol √, to be read as 'root.' I have here most often referred to G. Curtius, Principles of Greek Etymology, translated by Wilkins and England, ed. 1875; and to A. Fick, Vergleichendes Wörterbuch der Indogermanischen Sprachen, third edition, Göttingen, 1874.

10. Derivatives. The symbol 'Der.,' i.e. Derivatives, is used to introduce forms derived from the primary word, or from the same source. For an account of the various suffixes, see Morris's Historical Outlines of English Accidence, and Haldemann's Affixes to English Words; or, for the purpose of comparative philology, consult Schleicher's Compendium der Indogermanischen Sprachen.

11. Cross-references. These frequently afford additional information, and are mostly introduced to save repetition of an explanation.

12. It may be added that, when special allusion is made to Brachet's Etymological Dictionary, or to a similar work, it is meant, in general, that further details are to be found in the work referred to; and that it will commonly appear that there is a special reason for the reference.

From An Etymological Dictionary of the English Language, by the Rev. Walter W. Skeat, Litt.D. LL.D. Edin., M.A. Oxon. Elrington and Bosworth Professor of Anglo-Saxon in the University of Cambridge. Second Edition, 1883.