Word Origin Atlas

Exact historical dictionary sense

Copy in Webster's 1913 dictionary

The 1913 record labels copy as verb. Its source-bounded etymology and selected historical definition appear below.

WEBSTER 1913verb
Copy

[Cf. F. copir, fr. LL. copiare. See Copy, n.]

Cross-verified historical sense
The source text may be outdated. The page preserves that historical boundary.
Cross-verified 1913 record
Headwordcopy
Part of speechverb
Historical etymology[Cf. F. copir, fr. LL. copiare. See Copy, n.]
Selected historical definitionTo make a copy or copies of; to write; print, engrave, or paint after an original; to duplicate; to reproduce; to transcribe; as, to copy a manuscript, inscription, design, painting, etc.; -- often with out, sometimes with off.
Signed record IDwebster1913-copy-verb-42b2c07aa4b4
Source locatorCIDE.C, paragraph 17517; Gutenberg eBook 661
Edition-scoped answerNot earliest-attestation proofNot modern consensus
Independent historical textProject Gutenberg section 661Signed structural record sourceGNU GCIDE 0.54 archive
Quick answer

In Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913), "copy" is labeled verb. Its etymology is recorded as: "[Cf. F. copir, fr. LL. copiare. See Copy, n.]" The selected historical definition says: "To make a copy or copies of; to write; print, engrave, or paint after an original; to duplicate; to reproduce; to transcribe; as, to copy a manuscript, inscription, design, painting, etc.; -- often with out, sometimes with off."

Project Gutenberg Webster 1913 plus signed GNU GCIDE 0.54 Exact cross-verified historical record reviewed 2026-10-04

What this answer proves

One named sense in one historical dictionary edition.

The answer reports the selected headword, part of speech, etymology, definition, and source locator as transcribed in the cross-verified 1913 record.

Evidence boundaryIt does not establish the earliest attestation or a complete borrowing chain.It does not claim current scholarly consensus or a modern dictionary definition.Historical dictionary text may be obsolete, incomplete, inaccurate, or offensive by modern standards.

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noun

Company

[F. compagnie, fr. OF. compaing. See Companion.]

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Care

[AS. caru, cearu; akin to OS. kara sorrow, Goth. kara, OHG chara, lament, and perh. to Gr. gh^rys voice. Not akin to cure. Cf. Chary.]

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Change

[F. change, fr. changer. See Change. v. t.]

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Came

[Cf. Scot. came, caim, comb, and OE. camet silver.]

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Course

[F. cours, course, L. cursus, fr. currere to run. See Current.]

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