Word Origin Atlas

Exact historical dictionary sense

Switch in Webster's 1913 dictionary

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

WEBSTER 1913noun
Switch

[Cf. OD. swick a scourage, a whip. Cf. Swink, Swing.]

Cross-verified historical sense
The source text may be outdated. The page preserves that historical boundary.
Cross-verified 1913 record
Headwordswitch
Part of speechnoun
Historical etymology[Cf. OD. swick a scourage, a whip. Cf. Swink, Swing.]
Selected historical definitionA small, flexible twig or rod.
Signed record IDwebster1913-switch-noun-2f9ea87f8ab1
Source locatorCIDE.S, paragraph 25740; Gutenberg eBook 668
Edition-scoped answerNot earliest-attestation proofNot modern consensus
Independent historical textProject Gutenberg section 668Signed structural record sourceGNU GCIDE 0.54 archive
Quick answer

In Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913), "switch" is labeled noun. Its etymology is recorded as: "[Cf. OD. swick a scourage, a whip. Cf. Swink, Swing.]" The selected historical definition says: "A small, flexible twig or rod."

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 S records

Every card owns a different source record and historical sense.

adjective

Still

[OE. stille, AS. stille; akin to D. stil, OS. & OHG. stilli, G. still, Dan. stille, Sw. stilla, and to E. stall; from the idea of coming to a stand, or halt. Cf. Still, adv.]

Webster 1913 exact recordverb

Support

[F. supporter, L. supportare to carry on, to convey, in LL., to support, sustain; sub under + portare to carry. See Port demeanor.]

Webster 1913 exact recordnoun

Season

[OE. sesoun, F. saison, properly, the sowing time, fr. L. satio a sowing, a planting, fr. serere, satum, to sow, plant; akin to E. sow, v., to scatter, as seed.]

Webster 1913 exact recordnoun

Story

[OE. storie, OF. estoire, F. histoire, fr. L. historia. See History.]

Webster 1913 exact recordadjective

Single

[L. singulus, a dim. from the root in simplex simple; cf. OE. & OF. sengle, fr. L. singulus. See Simple, and cf. Singular.]

Webster 1913 exact record

Browse released S records - browse all historical records.