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Exact historical dictionary sense

Doubt in Webster's 1913 dictionary

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

WEBSTER 1913noun
Doubt

[OE. dute, doute, F. doute, fr. douter to doubt. See Doubt, v. i.]

Cross-verified historical sense
The source text may be outdated. The page preserves that historical boundary.
Cross-verified 1913 record
Headworddoubt
Part of speechnoun
Historical etymology[OE. dute, doute, F. doute, fr. douter to doubt. See Doubt, v. i.]
Selected historical definitionA fluctuation of mind arising from defect of knowledge or evidence; uncertainty of judgment or mind; unsettled state of opinion concerning the reality of an event, or the truth of an assertion, etc.; hesitation.
Signed record IDwebster1913-doubt-noun-fa94a0608796
Source locatorCIDE.D, paragraph 12221; Gutenberg eBook 662
Edition-scoped answerNot earliest-attestation proofNot modern consensus
Independent historical textProject Gutenberg section 662Signed structural record sourceGNU GCIDE 0.54 archive
Quick answer

In Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913), "doubt" is labeled noun. Its etymology is recorded as: "[OE. dute, doute, F. doute, fr. douter to doubt. See Doubt, v. i.]" The selected historical definition says: "A fluctuation of mind arising from defect of knowledge or evidence; uncertainty of judgment or mind; unsettled state of opinion concerning the reality of an event, or the truth of an assertion, etc.; hesitation."

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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Webster 1913 exact record

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