X Tutup
Advertisement

Origin and history of sparse

sparse(adj.)

"thinly scattered, existing at considerable intervals, widely spaced between," 1727, from Latin sparsus "scattered," past participle of spargere "to scatter, spread, shower." This is, according to de Vaan, from Proto-Italic *sparg-, from PIE *sp(e)rg- "to strew," extended form of root *sper- "to spread, sow" (source also of Hittite išpar- "to spread out, strew;" Greek speirein "to strew, to sow," spora "a scattering, sowing," sperma "sperm, seed," literally "that which is scattered").

Sparse has been regarded, falsely, as an Americanism, and has been objected to as being exactly equivalent to scattered, and therefore unnecessary. As a merely qualifying adjective, however, it is free from the possible ambiguity in the participial form and consequent verbal implication of scattered. [Century Dictionary, 1895] 

The word is found earlier in English as a verb, "to scatter abroad" (16c.). Related: Sparsely; sparseness; sparsity.

also from 1727

Entries linking to sparse

asperges(n.)

sprinkling ritual of the Catholic church, also an antiphon intoned or sung during this, 1550s, from Late Latin asperges, noun use of second-person singular future indicative of Latin aspergere "to scatter, strew upon, sprinkle," from ad "to" (see ad-) + spargere "to sprinkle" (see sparse).

The word is taken from the phrase Asperges me, Domine, hyssopo et mundabor, from the 51st Psalm (Vulgate), sung during the rite of sprinkling a congregation with holy water. Old English used onstregdan as a loan-translation of Latin aspergere.

aspersion(n.)

mid-15c., aspercion, originally in theology, "the shedding of Christ's blood," from Latin aspersionem (nominative aspersio) "a sprinkling," noun of action from past-participle stem of aspergere "to sprinkle on," from ad "to" (see ad-) + spargere "sprinkle, strew" (see sparse). The non-theological sense of "a bespattering with slander, derogatory criticism" is attested from 1590s. To cast aspersions was in Fielding (1749).

Advertisement

More to explore

diaspora
1825 in reference to Moravian protestants; 1869 in reference to the dispersion of the Jews; from Greek diaspora "dispersion," from diaspeirein "to scatter about, disperse," from dia "about, across" (see dia-) + speirein "to scatter" (see sparse). The Greek word was used in Septua
disperse
late 14c., dispersen, "to scatter, separate and send off or drive in different directions," from Latin dispersus, past participle of dispergere "to scatter," from dis- "apart, in every direction" (see dis-) + spargere "to scatter" (see sparse). The Latin word is glossed in Old En
dispersion
late 14c., dispersioun, "the Jewish diaspora," from Old French dispersion (13c.), from Latin dispersionem (nominative dispersio) "a scattering," noun of action from past-participle stem of dispergere "to scatter," from dis- "apart, in every direction" (see dis-) + spargere "to sc
thin
[Shakespeare, "The Tempest," IV.i.150, 1610] "Loose or sparse," hence "easily seen through," with figurative extensions....
sheer
free from guilt" (as in Sheer Thursday, the Thursday of Holy Week, the day before the Crucifixion); later schiere "thin, sparse...
rare
, "few in number and widely separated, sparsely distributed, seldom found, very infrequent;" from Old French rer, rere "sparse...
clear
, evident"); of land, "cleared, leveled;" from Old French cler "clear" (of sight and hearing), "light, bright, shining; sparse...
hint
c. 1600 (Shakespeare), "an indirect suggestion intended to be caught by the knowing," apparently from obsolete hent, from Middle English hinten "to tell, inform" (c. 1400), from Old English hentan "to seize," from Proto-Germanic *hantijan (source also of Gothic hinþan "to seize")
sojourn
c. 1300, sojournen, "stay temporarily, dwell for a time; visit as a temporary resident;" also "reside permanently, dwell;" from Old French sojorner "stay or dwell for a time," from Vulgar Latin *subdiurnare "to spend the day" (source also of Italian soggiornare). This is a compou
answer
Middle English answere, from Old English andswaru "a response, a reply to a question," from and- "against" (from PIE root *ant- "front, forehead," with derivatives meaning "in front of, before") + -swaru "affirmation," from swerian "to swear" (see swear). The proposed etymology s

Share sparse

Advertisement
Trending
Dictionary entries near sparse
Advertisement
X Tutup