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Origin and history of badinage

badinage(n.)

"light railery, playful banter," 1650s, from French badinage "playfulness, jesting," from badiner (v.) "to jest, joke," from badin "silly, jesting" (16c.), from Old Provençal badar "to yawn, gape," from Late Latin badare "to gape," from *bat- "to yawn" (see abash). One who indulges in it is a badineur.

also from 1650s

Entries linking to badinage

abash(v.)

"perplex or embarrass by suddenly exciting the conscience, discomfit, make ashamed," late 14c., abaishen, earlier "lose one's composure, be upset" (early 14c.), from Old French esbaiss-, present stem of esbaer "lose one's composure, be startled, be stunned."

Originally, to put to confusion from any strong emotion, whether of fear, of wonder, shame, or admiration, but restricted in modern times to effect of shame. [Hensleigh Wedgwood, "A Dictionary of English Etymology," 1859]

The first element is es "out" (from Latin ex; see ex-). The second may be ba(y)er "to be open, gape" (if the notion is "gaping with astonishment"), possibly ultimately imitative of opening the lips. Middle English Compendium also compares Old French abaissier "bow, diminish, lower oneself" (source of abase). Related: Abashed; abashing. Bashful is a 16c. derivative.

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    banter
    "attack with good-humored jokes and jests," 1670s, origin uncertain; said by Swift to be a word from London street slang. Related: Bantered; bantering. The noun, "good-humored ridicule," is from 1680s. The third refinement observable in the letter I send you, consists in the cho
    quorum
    early 15c., in law, "the senior justices of the peace," whose presence was necessary to constitute a court, from Latin quorum "of whom," genitive plural (masc. and neuter; fem. quarum) of qui "who" (from PIE root *kwo-, stem of relative and interrogative pronouns). The traditiona
    private
    late 14c., "pertaining or belonging to oneself, not shared, peculiar to an individual only;" of a thing, "not open to the public, for the use of privileged persons;" of a religious rule, "not shared by Christians generally, distinctive;" from Latin privatus "set apart (from what
    countenance
    mid-13c., contenaunce, "behavior, bearing, conduct, manners;" early 14c., "outward appearance, looks," from Old French contenance "demeanor, bearing, conduct," from Latin continentia "restraint, abstemiousness, moderation," literally "way one contains oneself," from continentem,
    brand
    Old English brand, brond "fire, flame, destruction by fire; firebrand, piece of burning wood, torch," and (poetic) "sword," from Proto-Germanic *brandaz "a burning" (source also of Old Norse brandr, Old High German brant, Old Frisian brond "firebrand; blade of a sword," German br
    lot
    Old English hlot "object used to determine someone's share" (anything from dice to straw, but often a chip of wood with a name inscribed on it), also "what falls to a person by lot," from Proto-Germanic *khlutom (source also of Old Norse hlutr "lot, share," Old Frisian hlot "lot,
    oppression
    mid-14c., oppressioun, "cruel or unjust use of power or authority," from Old French opression (12c.), from Latin oppressionem (nominative oppressio) "a pressing down; violence, oppression," noun of action from past-participle stem of opprimere "press against, press together, pres
    body
    Middle English bodi, from Old English bodig "trunk of a man or beast; the whole physical structure of a human or animal; material frame, material existence of a human; main or principal part of anything," related to Old High German botah, but otherwise of unknown origin. Not else
    enough
    c. 1300, from Old English genog "sufficient in quantity or number," from Proto-Germanic compound *ganog "sufficient" (source also of Old Saxon ginog, Old Frisian enoch, Dutch genoeg, Old High German ginuog, German genug, Old Norse gnogr, Gothic ganohs). First element is Old Engli
    depend
    mid-15c., "to be attached to as a condition or cause, be a conditional effect or result," a figurative use, also literal, "to hang, be sustained by being attached to something above;" from Old French dependre, literally "to hang from, hang down," and directly from Latin dependere

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