Infectant words

The word infection in our time is most often used - well, or recently, in peacetime, was used - in a figurative meaning, joking, animated, such as an ulcer . Here is an infection! Well, you are an ulcer! Of course, the development of portable values ​​is a very common type of linguistic changes, but in this clan of the same-rooted relatives they flourish somehow exemplary magnificently. As if they had re -randed from each other.

The source (he is also the parent) of the word of the infection is the verb to infect, that is, to transmit ': in the literal sense-a disease, and metaphorically-enthusiasm for something. By the way, a rather old metaphor was used by Karamzin. " When holy jealousy, to expel the wrong ones from the land , infected all Europe ..."

But let's see how this verb was used in antiquity. For example, in the annals of the XIII century (according to the list of the 16th century): “ That summer, the thunder is terrible in the city of Volodimer, and the infection of the deacon ... at the vengeance at the output of the octena of the verb .” Stop, it’s clearly not about the disease. I recall the thunder broke out ; How to hit with a thunder ... But the complaint of the beginning of the XVII century against a certain old man Efrosin, who " infected " the author of the complaint " on the head of the field " 1 ... this is how?

The fact is that the modern meaning that we now perceive as direct was previously figurative itself. In the “Dictionary of the Russian Language of the XI - XVII centuries” the first example associated with the disease also dates back to the 17th century. And the verb in it is not used independently, but in the phrase is infected with the disease , literally - 'affected by the disease', 'defeated the disease'. Apparently, in this phrase, a new meaning has grown to infect by the word, replacing the old, understandable thanks to the preserved one -rooted to impress ( with a sword or thunder ) and break out. And, of course, thanks to the producing word, to smash.

But the verb itself was very prolific to infect , and in its descendants the meaning of the root also underwent the transformation.

So, now only two things are infectious : firstly, laughter (or laughter ) , and secondly, an example . The adjective is rare to get beyond this pair-three-three cliche, again quite old 2 , in less trivial phrases such as contagious optimism or contagious faith . But in any case, this is the original, of course, a metaphor.

And a century ago, Ilya Ehrenburg in Hulio Hurenito (1921) "In Australia, the rams are ill with some kind of contagious disease." But, as we already guess, “ infectious disease ” is also a metaphor, only earlier. And for sure! Because in the "Statement of military affairs", " fiery tricks " are contagious , that is, incendiary weapons - an old means of mass destruction .

But who is the breach ? Oh, this XVIII century. A word from his repertoire.

However, I do not dare
All this is bought by paradise
And draw in the picture
Passionate infectians ...

(From the poem of N. A. Lvov "Russian 1791"))

Of course, the breach is a charming man, a charming man. The gallant century generally all the time requires gestable and gallant designations of love feelings and games. Therefore, in the taste of the era, to infect - it is also 'charm, captivate, cause a love feeling.' I infected him = "I fell in love with him."

Yes, in fact, in this era and infection you can call love, charm. “ I am infinitive” = “Her charm is unique.” Here is the same poet of the XVIII century N. A. Lvov describes the beauty of the Russian winter:

The lady is going big,
The whistle of the wind is chasing
To their dear guests;
Belly scattered the braids
On shining shoulders <...>
But the infection is beneficial,
Though they were pouring to everyone
And they caressed the same ...

Finally, in the era of powdery wigs, there may be a beloved herself! And this is not a playful reproach, but a completely serious compliment:

Rosana to mine
Both to heart and mind
It will be forever infection .

(N.P. Nikolev " Rosan and love", 1781)

Returning, thus, by the word of the infection , we recall the very wild old use of the same form. In the “Little Entities of the Order of the Secret Affairs of Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich in 1671,” we can read that “ the king was amused in Kuntsovo infectriages .” And what is this infection?

Again, the annalistic context will shed light, which states that after the "rains of the great" " ditches and infection like the abyss of the abyss are trained." These infections are ravines! And the dad of Peter I was probably amused by the hunting in the Kuntsevsky forests rich in game, where he loved to visit Ilya Danilovich Miloslavsky, the owner of the village of Kuntsev in the house of his father -in -law.

But how can ravines be associated with an infectious disease? Here we must again recall the verb to wrap it up , cut a close relative of the verb, with a similar initial meaning - to “beat, cut”. Ravings - cuts, wounds of the earth, cut through streams! And this is no longer transferred, but an independent formation of the same form with different meaning. This happens all the time! For example, a nurse of the 18th century did not take care of the patient, but was a place for sitting, that is, a bench, a boat board, etc.

So from the Supreme - Razes on the body of the Earth - we moved to the most etymological root once . In the numerous clan of his descendants, where words with a historical prefix for only one of the branches, various semantic shifts are also found at every step. It is enough to name the words amazing and image, image and education . With the first, it is clear - from the verb to hit , which in expression as a thunder is still a metaphor for a strong shock. And we need such metaphors every now and then: incredible, amazing, amazing, stunning ...

The rest of the named are connected with the root of the value of the value 'capture, depict' and a whole swarm of portable values. Find it - cut the image, then draw. Hence the image - the appearance, appearance, then the icon, and the method of action, and the literary visual means. From here to form - to give shape, goodness. Hence the education -and the emergence of something (and hence the word formation and neoplasm , for example), and the "structure of knowledge, skills of a person gained as a result of training and practical activity." And all these words, semantically so far from each other, are genetically quite close, and even their internal form is still transparent.

But perhaps the most unexpected relative is a short word of times . Yes, and it also came from the same root. More precisely, it is a clean root. From a word -forming point of view, once - to develop are connected in the same way as clap - clap and top - stomp . That is, it is an expressive truncation and initially means 'blow'. The memory of this is still preserved in expression to give times . 'Blow' - 'one blow' - 'one'. Such is not the most ordinary evolution of semantics.

All health and no one, except metaphorical ones!

Irina Fufaeva,
scientific. sore. Institute of Linguistics of the RSUSU

1 Acts of the Kirillo-Belozersky Monastery, 1620.

2 “I and myself ... Imontrant followed the example and composed poems by the Yambami” (A. N. Radishchev. “Travel from St. Petersburg to Moscow”).