Word Origin Atlas

Exact historical dictionary sense

Release in Webster's 1913 dictionary

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

WEBSTER 1913verb
Release

[OE. relessen, OF. relassier, to release, to let free. See Relay, n., Relax, and cf. Release to lease again.]

Cross-verified historical sense
The source text may be outdated. The page preserves that historical boundary.
Cross-verified 1913 record
Headwordrelease
Part of speechverb
Historical etymology[OE. relessen, OF. relassier, to release, to let free. See Relay, n., Relax, and cf. Release to lease again.]
Selected historical definitionTo let loose again; to set free from restraint, confinement, or servitude; to give liberty to, or to set at liberty; to let go.
Signed record IDwebster1913-release-verb-1ea3fe2a6cab
Source locatorCIDE.R, paragraph 4497; Gutenberg eBook 667
Edition-scoped answerNot earliest-attestation proofNot modern consensus
Independent historical textProject Gutenberg section 667Signed structural record sourceGNU GCIDE 0.54 archive
Quick answer

In Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913), "release" is labeled verb. Its etymology is recorded as: "[OE. relessen, OF. relassier, to release, to let free. See Relay, n., Relax, and cf. Release to lease again.]" The selected historical definition says: "To let loose again; to set free from restraint, confinement, or servitude; to give liberty to, or to set at liberty; to let go."

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.

More released R records

Every card owns a different source record and historical sense.

noun

Right

[AS. right. See Right, a.]

Webster 1913 exact recordverb

Research

[Pref. re- + search: cf. OF. recerchier, F. rechercher.]

Webster 1913 exact recordverb

Remember

[OF. remebrer, L. rememorari; pref. re- re- + memorare to bring to remembrance, from memor mindful. See Memory, and cf. Rememorate.]

Webster 1913 exact recordnoun

Report

[Cf. F. rapport. See Report.v. t.]

Webster 1913 exact recordverb

Reason

[Cf. F. raisonner. See Reason, n.]

Webster 1913 exact record

Browse released R records - browse all historical records.