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Origin and history of loaded

loaded(adj.)

1660s, "laden, burdened," past-participle adjective from load (v.). Of dice, from 1739 (in a French phrase book, translating des Dez chargés), in reference to the lead inserted to unbalance them. Sense of "rich, wealthy" is attested from 1910. Of guns, 1858. Slang meaning "drunk" is from 1886, probably from expression take one's load "drink one's fill" (1590s).

also from 1660s

Entries linking to loaded

load(v.)

late 15c., "to place in or on (a vehicle)," from load (n.). Sense of "add to the weight of, put a load in or on" is from c. 1500; sense of "to charge a firearm" is from 1620s. Intransitive sense "put or take on a load or charge" is from 1720; of a vehicle, "to fill with passengers," from 1832. Of computer files or programs, by 1977. Related: Loaded; loaden (the old strong past participle, persisting till 18c. in poetry but now obsolete); loading.

lade(v.)

"put a burden, load, or cargo on or in," Middle English, from Old English hladan (past tense hlod, past participle gehladen) "to load, heap up, burden" (the general Germanic sense), also "to draw or take up water" (a meaning peculiar to English), from Proto-Germanic *hlathan-, which is reconstructed (Watkins) to be from PIE *klā- "to spread out flat" (source also of Lithuanian kloti "to spread," Old Church Slavonic klado "to set, place").

In modern use load (v.) is the chief verb in the transitive sense; lade is restricted to the loading of ships. The past participle laden was longer active in the language but in 20c., excepting in certain phrases, it was displaced by loaded. Also compare lading.

Germanic cognates include Old Norse hlaða "to pile up, load, especially a ship," Old Saxon hladan, Middle Dutch and Dutch laden, Old Frisian hlada "to load," Old High German hladen, German laden "to load, to charge."

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    sozzled
    "drunk," 1886, from sozzle "to mix or mingle sloppily or confusedly" (1836), also sossle; a low word imitative or suggestive of the notion and used in vernacular for sloppiness, sluttishness, and household disorder. The 20c. verb sozzle "drink heavily" (by 1937) appears to be a b
    stiff
    Middle English stif, from Old English stif "rigid, inflexible, not easily bent," in physical senses often suggesting rigor mortis, from Proto-Germanic *stifaz "inflexible" (source also of Dutch stijf, Old Frisian stef, Old High German stif, German steif "stiff;" Old Norse stifla
    tight
    c. 1400, tyght "dense, close, compact," from Middle English thight, from Old Norse þettr "watertight, close in texture, solid," and also from Old English -þiht (compare second element in meteþiht "stout from eating"), both from Proto-Germanic *thinhta- (source also of Middle High
    boot
    This is from the notion of the first-loaded program pulling itself (and the rest) up by the bootstrap....
    cargo
    1650s, "freight loaded on a ship," from Spanish cargo "burden," from cargar "to load, impose taxes," from Late Latin carricare...
    quay
    "landing place, place where vessels are loaded and unloaded, a wharf," 1690s, a spelling variant of Middle English key, keye...
    Gatling gun
    Dispatches state that it was very destructive, and rebel prisoners were very curious to know whether it was loaded all night...
    stretch
    Middle English strecchen, from Old English streccan (transitive and intransitive) "draw out to full length, spread out, prostrate (oneself);" also "to reach or extend in space" (past tense strehte, past participle streht). This is from Proto-Germanic *strakjanan (source also of D
    eland
    Cape elk, large South African antelope, 1786, from Dutch eland "elk," probably from a Baltic source akin to Lithuanian elnias "deer," from PIE *el- (2) "red, brown" (see elk), cognate with first element in Greek Elaphebolion, name of the ninth month of the Attic year (correspondi
    recharge
    early 15c., "to reload" (a vessel), from re- "again, back" + charge (v.) "to load" (q.v.); modeled on Old French rechargier "to load, load back on" (13c.). The general sense of "put a fresh charge in, reload, refill" is by 1839 and might be a new formation from the same elements.

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