sty
- sty
\ \ English has two distinct words sty. The ‘pig enclosure’ [OE] is not recorded for certain as an independent word before the 13th century, but it occurs in compounds in Old English, and it is probably the same word as Old English stig ‘hall’ (source of English steward). It goes back ultimately to a prehistoric Germanic *stijam.
\ \ The sty on one’s eye [17] denotes etymologically a ‘swelling’. It comes from the now defunct styany ‘sty’. This was misinterpreted as ‘sty-oneye’, but in fact it was a compound formed from Middle English styan ‘swelling’ (a descendant of the present participle of Old English stīgan ‘rise’, which is related to modern English stair and stirrup) and eye.
\ \ Cf.⇒ STEWARD; EYE, STAIR, STIRRUP
Word origins - 2ed.
J. Ayto.
2005.
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Look at other dictionaries:
sty — sty·las·ter; sty·las·te·ri·na; sty·late; sty·let; sty·let·ed; sty·let·i·form; … English syllables
Sty — Sty, n. [For older styan, styanye, understood as sty on eye, AS. st[=i]gend (sc. e[ a]ge eye), properly, rising, or swelling (eye), p. p. of st[=i]gan to rise. See {Sty}, v. i.] (Med.) An inflamed swelling or boil on the edge of the eyelid.… … The Collaborative International Dictionary of English
Sty — Sty, n.; pl. {Sties}. [Written also {stigh}.] [AS. stigu, fr. st[=i]gan to rise; originally, probably, a place into which animals climbed or went up. [root]164. See {Sty}, v. i., and cf. {Steward}.] 1. A pen or inclosure for swine. [1913 Webster] … The Collaborative International Dictionary of English
Sty — Sty, v. i. [OE. stien, sti?en, AS. st[=i]gan to rise; akin to D. stijgen, OS. & OHG. st[=i]gan, G. steigen, Icel. st[=i]ga, Sw. stiga, Dan. stige, Goth. steigan, L. vestigium footstep, Gr. ? to walk, to go, Skr. stigh to mount. Cf. {Distich},… … The Collaborative International Dictionary of English
Sty — Sty, v. t. [imp. & p. p. {Stied}; p. pr. & vb. n. {Stying}.] To shut up in, or as in, a sty. Shak. [1913 Webster] … The Collaborative International Dictionary of English
sty — Ⅰ. sty [1] ► NOUN (pl. sties) ▪ a pigsty. ORIGIN from an Old English word found in the combination «sty pig». Ⅱ. sty [2] (also stye) ► NOUN (pl … English terms dictionary
sty — sty1 [stī] n. pl. sties [ME stie < OE sti, stig, hall, enclosure, prob. < IE base * stāi , to stop up, thicken > STONE] 1. a pen for pigs 2. any foul or filthy place vt., vi. stied, stying to lodge in or as in a sty sty2 … English World dictionary
sty — [ staı ] noun count 1. ) a small building where pigs are kept on a farm a ) AMERICAN INFORMAL a very messy or dirty room 2. ) sty or stye an infection of the EYELID that makes it red and painful … Usage of the words and phrases in modern English
sty — The word meaning ‘a pen for pigs’ has the plural form sties. The word for ‘an inflamed swelling on the eyelid’ should be spelt sty, not stye, and also has the plural form sties … Modern English usage
sty|li — «STY ly», noun. a plural of stylus … Useful english dictionary
sty|lo|po|di|um — «STY luh POH dee uhm», noun, plural di|a « dee uh». Botany. one of the double, fleshy disks surmounting the ovary and supporting the styles in plants of the parsley family. ╂[< New Latin stylopodium < stylus (< Greek stŷlos pillar) +… … Useful english dictionary
