“Ooze” Word Origin and Meaning Coursework

The modern spelling of the word ooze was formed in the late 15th century. According to the Oxford British & World English Dictionary modern version of this word came to us from Middle English. It was pronounced as wose, which in Old English was wāse and it meant mire, soft mud, etc. According to some sources, the first known use of this word was before the 12th century. It is related to Old Norse word veisa – stagnant water, slime and to Old Saxon word waso – wet ground, mire. To Old English, it came from the Proto-Germanic word wosan. According to some sources, there was a Middle Low German word wose, which meant scum, Old High German wasal – rain and it is akin to Old Swedish word os (oos). Originally this word was derived from the Proto-Indo-European language. The word was sound like weis, which meant to flow or dissolve, (related to Sanskrit vásā – oil, fat). It was also imported to Latin as a well-known word virus – poison, slimy liquid.

The modern spelling of the word ooze is pronounced as [u:z]. When it first came to the English language, the word was pronounced as wāse. With the change of vowels in Old English, words with ā became words with sounds like [ɔ:] and [o]. In Middle English old diphthongs were smoothed and some new ones were added. As a result of vocalization, the spelling of the word became wose – [voυz] (as in repose), but from the middle of 15th-century spelling had a change in pronunciation, influenced by Old English wōs – juice, sap, and it started to pronounce as [u:z].

The word ooze, as well as most of the English words, has multiple meanings. Most of them are common. As a verb ooze means “[no object] (of a fluid) slowly trickle or seep out of something; flow in a very gradual way” and “[no object] slowly exude or discharge a viscous fluid” (Oxford English Dictionary), also it means “[with object] give a powerful impression of (a quality)” (Oxford English Dictionary). As a noun ooze means “[mass noun] the sluggish flow of a fluid” and “an infusion of oak bark or other vegetable matter, used in tanning” (Oxford English Dictionary). As an intransitive verb, it means “to flow or leak out slowly, as though very small holes; seep”, “to give forth moisture, as through pores”, “to escape or disappear gradually” (Collins English Dictionary). As a transitive verb, it means to exude liquid and has such synonyms as seep, drain, dribble, drip, escape, filter, leak. An adjective oozy means something giving forth moisture, something slimy (Collins English Dictionary). According to some sources, the word ooze as a noun has a meaning of “soft mud or slime; esp., the deep layers of sediment at the bottom of a lake, ocean”, “an area of the muddy ground; bog”. The word ooze does not have any usage restrictions. The usage of this word is well illustrated by Shakespeare:

…Upon the slime and ooze scatters his grain,

And shortly comes to harvest. (Shakespeare 939)

…And make her chronicle as rich with praise

As is the ooze and bottom of the sea

With sunken wrack and sumless treasuries. (Shakespeare 488)

Since the word ooze first appeared in English, it almost has not changed. Originally it meant something liquid, leaking, slimy, or muddy, but now it has some additional meanings, such as “give a powerful impression” (Oxford English Dictionary) and to disappear gradually. It has multiple synonyms. As a noun, in the meaning of liquid, it has such synonyms as fluid, muck, mud, glop, slime, sludge, and so on. These words are often used to describe something on the surface, like mud or mire, while ooze is usually used to describe the sea-bed or the bottom of a lake. In the meaning of seeping or bleeding, it has such synonyms as drain, exude, shed, run, spurt, etc. It usually means to flow slowly, seep gradually. In the meaning of discharging something, the word ooze is related to elimination, exudation, voiding, etc. There are also a lot of synonymous words as dribble, leak, drool, drop, trickle, and so on.

It is made by a single morpheme, which is carrying its meaning. This word can have different forms as an adjective (oozier, ooziest). It can be used as a verb (to ooze), noun (ooze), or adjective (oozy).

Bibliography

Collins English Dictionary 2013. Web. n.d.

Oxford English Dictionary 2013. Web. n.d.

Shakespeare, William. The Works of William Shakespeare Gathered into One Volume, New York: Oxford University Press, 1938. Print.