Ape (noun): A member of the Hominoidea superfamily of primates.
Ape (verb): To imitate in every aspect.
Are apes so called because they are seen to imitate humans? Or is something that 'apes' something else so described because it behaves like an Ape?
Or are the two meanings totally unrelated?
2006-09-25 15:32:24 · 5 answers · asked by Anonymous in Society & Culture ➔ Languages
According to Merriam-Webster, the noun dates to before the 12th Century from the Anglo-Saxon "apa" meaning ape.
The verb is first documented from 1632 (no entymology given).
2006-09-25 15:52:32 · answer #1 · answered by The Doctor 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
I agree- noun first. The verb evolved from watching APES imitate.
2006-09-25 15:40:17 · answer #2 · answered by rottymom02 5 · 1⤊ 0⤋
The noun came first and the verb resulted much later through a linguistic process known as conversion.
2006-09-25 16:56:37 · answer #3 · answered by Taivo 7 · 3⤊ 0⤋
I think that as a noun first
2006-09-25 15:36:17 · answer #4 · answered by tanahcr 3 · 1⤊ 0⤋
noun first probably
2006-09-25 15:41:10 · answer #5 · answered by DeAnna 5 · 1⤊ 0⤋