representing OE. under-, = OS. undar-, OHG. untar-, ON. undir-, etc. (see UNDER prep.). In OE. about eighty words with this prefix are recorded, but only fifteen or sixteen of these are of frequent occurrence. Of the total number about fifty are verbs, and twenty-five nouns, the adjectives being few and rare. In OHG. there are also many examples both of verbs and nouns, in ON. of nouns only; on the other hand there are few recorded examples in OS., and none in Gothic.
2. In OE. (as in OHG.) a considerable number of the compounds with under- were clearly suggested by Latin forms with sub- (suc-, etc.) and occur only as renderings of these, e.g., underberan, supportare, sustinere; underbéʓed, subjectus; underbrǽdan, -breʓdan, substernere; undercerrende, subvertens; undercuman, subvenire. The frequency of such forms no doubt contributed greatly to establish the vogue of the prefix in ordinary use. The practice of rendering L. sub- by under- is extensively followed in the earlier Wycliffite version of the Bible, and gives rise to a large number of unique or unusual forms, as underburn, -cry, -drench, -follow, -grow, -heave, -hile, -join, -laugh, -lead, -minister, -mow, etc., which are illustrated below, together with some others occurring in the anonymous translation of the Pauline Epistles. Similar examples are occasionally found in other ME. translated texts, as underorn, -slake (q.v.), after L. subornare, summitigare.
1382. Wyclif, Nahum ii. 13. And Y shal *vndre brenne [L. succendam] thi cartis of foure horsis. Ibid., Gen. xxxix. 14. Whanne Y hadde *vndercried [L. succlamassem], he forsoke the mantil that I heelde. Ibid., Luke xxiii. 21. Thei vndircryeden [L. succlamabant], seyinge, Crucifie, crucifie him. Ibid., Exod. xv. 10. The see couerde hem; and thei ben *vnder dreynt [L. submersi] as leed in hidows watris.
a. 1400. Pauline Ep. (Powell), Gal. ii. 4. Þe false breþerene þe whyche *vndyrentredyn [L. subintroierunt] to spye oure freenesse þat we hafe in iesu crist.
1382. Wyclif, Ps. xxii. 6. Thi mercy shal *vnderfolewe [L. subsequetur] me alle the daȝis of my lif.
a. 1400. Pauline Ep. (Powell), 1 Tim. v. 24. Þe synnus of summe men ar schewyd opyn goande bifore to þe dome and of summe forsoþe þei vnderfolewyn [L. subsequuntur].
1382. Wyclif, Gen. xxvi. 13. He ȝede profytynge and *vndurgrowynge [L. succrescens] to the tyme that he was maad hugeli greet. Ibid., Exod. xxiii. 5. I thow se an asse of hym that hatith thee lye vnder the charge, thow shalt *vnderheue [L. sublevabis] with hym. Ibid., Num. xii. 14. Whether shulde she not seuen days with reednes be *vnderhilid [L. suffundi]? Ibid., Ps., Prol. Heer also is taȝt what bi penaunce be purchasid, whan he *vnderioyneth, I shal teche wicke men thi weies. Ibid., Ecclus. xiii. 7. And *vnder laȝhende [L. subridens] hope he shal ȝyue, tellende to thee alle goodes. Ibid., Ezek. xxiii. 3. There the breestis of hem ben *vndirled [L. subacta]. Ibid., Ecclus. xxxix. 39. Alle the werkes of the Lord [are] good; and ech werk in his hour shal *vndermynestren [L. subministrabit]. Ibid., 1 Tim. v. 10. If she vndirmynistride to men suffringe tribulacioun.
a. 1400. Pauline Ep. (Powell), Eph. iv. 16. On whom alle þe body is knyt to gydere by alle þe ioynture of *vndermynystracion [L. subministrationis].
1382. Wyclif, Ps. xxxiv. 16. Thei *vndermouwiden [L. subsannaverunt] me with vndermouwing. Ibid., Rom., Prol. He writeth therfore to the Romaynes, the whiche wolden with proud contencioun *vnderpoten either other. Ibid., Gen. xxvii. 36. Now secounde he hath *vnder rauyshide [L. surripuit] my benysoun. Ibid., 1 Sam. ii. 7. The Lord mekith, and *vndurrerith [L. sublevat]. Ibid., Acts xxvii. 4. We *vndirsailiden [L. subnavigavimus] to Cypre, for that wyndis weren contrarie. Ibid., Acts xxvii. 17. The vessel *vndirsent [L. summisso], so thei were borun.
a. 1400. Pauline Ep. (Powell), Col. ii. 19. Þe hed, of whom alle þe body is bildid in to one þurgh coniunccions and *vnderseruyd [L. subministratum] þurgh þe bondys of charite.
1382. Wyclif, Eph. iv. 16. Al the body sett to gidere, and boundyn to gidere by ech ioynture of *vndirseruyng [L. subministrationis]. Ibid., Deut. xxxii. 22. Fier is *vndurtent [L. succensus] in my woodnes. Ibid., Ps. xvii. 9. Colis ben vndertend of hym. Ibid., Dan. viii. 3. Oo wether hauynge heeȝ horns, and oon heeȝer than an other, and *vndrewexinge [L. succrescens]. Ibid., 1 Sam., Prol. Fro thens thei *vndurweuyden Sophym, that is, the book of Jugis. Ibid., Gen. xxvii. 37. Alle his britheren I haue *vndir ȝockid [L. subjugavi] to the seruyce of hym. Ibid., Nehemiah v. 5. We han vnder ȝokid our sonus and oure doȝtris in to seruage.
3. In combination both with verbs and with nouns various senses of the prefix were already developed in OE., and further variations have arisen in the later language, the starting-point for new developments being usually the Elizabethan period. In most of its senses under- can be freely employed to form new compounds, the meaning of which is obvious except when they are used in some special or technical connection. In some of these general types under- is correlative to OVER-, and not infrequently the actual compound in under- is entirely due to the previous use of one in over-.
In the following sections a number of the more casual formations are given by way of illustration; those which have a more permanent character, or which for some reason require special treatment, are entered in their alphabetical places as main words. The uses which are most capable of giving rise to new formations, of which complete enumeration is impossible, are 4 a, 5, 6, 9, 10 a, b. Altogether the senses of the prefix may be classed under four heads:
I. Denoting local position.
4. With verbs. The following variations are found in OE. and in the later language: a. Denoting action (or continuance of a state) carried on under or beneath something, as OE. underberan to support from below, underdelfan to dig beneath, underetan to eat away, to sap, underiernan to run beneath, etc., ME. undercut, -dig, -grow, -hole, -mine, -pitch, -shore, -strew, and the later underbind, -brace, -build, -gird, -hew, etc. b. Denoting the action of moving so as to be or to get under something, as OE. underflówan to flow under, underhníʓan to descend beneath, underscéotan to pass under; ME. undercreep; also with causative force, as OE. underbreʓdan to spread under, underdón to put under, understíngan, to thrust under, ME. underput, -set. Additions to this group are not frequent in the later language, but occur in undercrawl, -dive, -run, -work, and with slight variation of sense in underpeep, -peer. c. Rarely, the sense of from below is found, as in underpeep, -shine.
In the dictionaries of Florio (1611), and Hexham (1647), under- is used in the above senses to form a number of compounds that are merely suggested by Italian forms in sog-, sop-, sot(to)- and Dutch in onder-, as underbend, -knit, -loft, -mark, -note, -roof (Florio), underfume, -gripe, -lift, -press, -smoke (Hexham). In addition to verbs, the following miscellaneous examples include instances of the ppl. adj. and agent-noun.
c. 1900. Bucks Handbk. Med. Sci., VIII. 142. (Cent. Suppl.). The building is very solidly built, but *undercellared only.
1890. Nasmith, Cotton Spinning Mach., x. 148. The *under clearer spring is attached to the roller beam. Ibid. (1892), Students Cotton Spinning, ix. 329. An underclearer D′, is sustained below the bottom front rollers.
1883. A. Dobson, Old-World Idylls, 6, Dead Letter, iii.
Piled with a dapper Dresden world, | |
Beaux, beauties, prayers, and poses, | |
Bonzes with squat legs *undercurled, | |
And great jars filled with roses. |
182832. Webster, *Underditch, v.t., to form a deep ditch or trench to drain the surface of land.
1904. Nature, 13 Oct., 593/2. An *underfolded and underthrust knot of younger strata.
a. 1825. Forby, Voc. E. Anglia, *Under-grub, to undermine.
1808. Coleridge, Lett., to T. Jeffrey (1895), 537. When I first wrote it I *undermarked it.
1839. Q. Rev., LXIII. 415. No accuracy in *underpiling the platform is thus practicable.
1846. trans. Port Royal Method Grk. Tongue, 8. The three *under-pointed [Greek vowels], ᾳ, ῃ, ῳ.
1864. Kingsley, Roman & T., p. liv. We shall believe not merely in an over-ruling Providence, but (if I may dare to coin a word) in an *under-ruling one.
1800. Hurdis, Fav. Village, 132. Behold! where now he *undersaps the sward.
1846. Landor, Imag. Conv., Wks. I. 472/2. One hath fallen the moment when he had reached the last step of the ladder, having *undersawed it for him who went before.
1877. Blackie, Wise Men, 119. The hidden working of the travelling fire That *underscoops the earth.
1879. Lanier, Poems, To B. Taylor, 2. To range, deep-wrapt, along a heavenly height, Oerseeing all that man but *undersees.
1885. W. K. Parker, Mammalian Descent, vii. 169. We have a ploughshare bone large and long in proportion to the beam which it *undersplices.
1889. Voice (N.Y.), 28 Nov. A pure serious aim *undersweeps his work and comes out in it like a transfiguration.
1893. Amer. Jrnl. Sci., XLV. 306 (heading), *Underthrust Folds and Faults.
d. A noun of action with under- may have the same form as the verb, as undercut, -gnaw, -hang, -lay, -lie, -lift, -mine, -run, -score, -spin, -thrust.
1895. J. J. Raven, Hist. Suffolk, 1. The coast line has suffered, and still suffers, from the constant undergnaw of the German Ocean.
5. With nouns: a. In names of garments worn under other articles of clothing, found in OE. underhwítel, -syrc, but not common till the 16th century, when undercap, -forebody, -frock, -garment, -girdle, -sleeve occur. The following are examples of recent or less usual compounds.
Contrasted with OVER 8 c, and in modern use sometimes replaced by SUB- 3.
1895. Daily News, 24 Dec., 6/3. The chiffon *under-bodice being visible between the two sides.
1611. Florio, Sottomanto, an *vnder-cloake, a Cassocke.
1893. G. Egerton, Keynotes, 177. His trousers too must have been made before he grew stout; they ruck up at the knees, and show the end line of his *under-drawers quite plainly.
1859. Habits of Gd. Society, iii. 144. I should like to know how often the advocates of linen change their own *under-flannel.
b. Denoting that the thing specified is either placed below something else, or is the lower in position of two similar things; the two cases are only clearly distinguishable when it is usual for the things to go in pairs. The use is very rare in OE. and ME., but begins to extend in the 16th century and is common from the 17th. When pairs of things are contrasted, under- becomes equivalent to lower (as over- to upper), and readily assumes an adjectival function: see UNDER a. 1 b.
1878. P. H. Carpenter, in Quart. Jrnl. Microsc. Sc., XVIII. 366. I shall shortly show that these second or *under basals are also present in the calyx of Pentacrinus briareus.
1889. Science-Gossip, XXV. 261/1. A starling was found having its *under-beak evidently shot off.
1611. Cotgr., Soupoultreau, an *vnder-beame.
1862. in Veness, El Dorado (1866), App. 140. An *under-box for a pump.
1707. Mortimer, Husb., 363. To rub off all the *Under-buds, leaving only a few near the top to draw up the Sap.
1738. Chambers, Cycl., s.v. Letter, Printers distinguish their letters into capital or upper-case letters, and minuscule, small, or *under-case letters.
1890. Nasmith, Cotton Spinning Mach., Index. *Undercasings for carding machine. Ibid. (1892), Students Cotton Spinning, iv. 112. The relative position of the knives and undercasing.
1690. C. Nesse, O. & N. Test., I. 23. If the outside and the *underceiling of this glorious room be so glittering.
1875. W. MIlwraith, Guide to Wigtownshire, 7. Many of these smugglers had *under-cellars in their houses of concealment.
1611. Florio, Sotto camera, an *vnder-chamber.
1805. Wordsw., Prel., VI. 227. Her exulting outside look of youth And placid *under-countenance.
1852. Mrs. Craik, Agathas Husb., xx. 281. He took out a paper, tore it opentore likewise an *under-cover addressed to his wife.
1845. M. Pattison, S. Langton, in Lives Eng. Saints, vii. 124. A more honourable place than the damp and dark *undercrypt.
1611. Florio, Sottotazza, an *vnder-cup of essay.
1897. Daily News, 1 Jan., 6/6. After a diver has been down to examine the *under-fittings of the Delta.
1611. Cotgr., Beisle, th Orelop, or *vnder-hatches, of a ship.
1867. Augusta Wilson, Vashti, xxxv. There were tears hanging on the long jet *under-lashes.
1841. Florists Jrnl. (1846), II. 266. They are natives of the table land of Mexico, wholly below the *underlimit of frost.
1611. Florio, Sopalco, an *vnder-loft, or sellar, or seeling.
1895. Archæol. Æliana, XVII. II. 287. It has apparently been moved for use as an *underpacking when the Early English arcade was built.
1855. Poultry Chron., II. 498. How again can they avoid mistakes when half the birds are hidden in dark *under-pens?
1730. A. Gordon, Maffeis Amphith., 402. The Pedesial or *Under-Pilaster.
1871. trans. Schellens Spectr. Anal., xxv. 87. This micrometer consists of a sliding-plate, [and] an *under-plate on which the first plate travels.
1598. Florio, Sopportico, an *vnderporch.
1839. Carlyle, Lett. (1904), I. 158. Chorleys under jaw went like the hopper or *under-riddle of a pair of fanners.
1833. Gresley, Gloss. Coal-m., 234. *Under-rope [= S-rope, the winding rope which passes round the under side of the drum]. Ibid., 268. *Under-seams, lower or deeper coal seams.
1733. W. Ellis, Chiltern & Vale Farm., 128. The Drip of their Heads falling upon their *Under-shoots.
1883. F. Day, Indian Fish, 28. Where large *under-sluices are present, fish can pass up such when open.
1843. Civil Eng. & Arch. Jrnl., VI. 265/2. A cross sheth, f, to be bolted down to the undersole, a, to support the front part of the wagon.
1877. Ruskin, St. Marks Rest, iv. (1894), 49. With such solid *under-support that, from 1480 till now, it stands rain and frost!
1902. Westm. Gaz., 29 Jan., 9/2. A large Government order for 2,100 *undertrucks and 150 complete wagons.
1822. J. Parkinson, Outl. Oryctol., 150, note. Attached to an operculum, or *undervalve.
c. Denoting position below a surface or covering, or at a depth. Examples of this occur from the 17th century, but are not common until the 19th.
1856. Kane, Arct. Expl., II. i. 26. I hope that the *underbottom ice exceeds that height.
1892. Meredith, Poet. Wks. (1912), 325. There chimed a bubbled *underbrew With witch-wild spray of vocal dew.
1894. Crockett, Raiders (ed. 3), 286. The rippling tide swirling in the smooth places with an oily *underbubble.
1869. J. Martineau, in Life (1902), I. 446. How curiously the religious tendency finds an *undercourse, and breaks out at unexpected points!
1858. Caswall, Poems, 192. Up from the *underdepth unsearchable of primal Being.
1897. Mary Kingsley, W. Africa, 257. Hour after hour we passed on, in the *under-gloom of the great forest.
1885. Mabel Collins, Ld. Vanecourts Dau., I. vi. 80. The light brought out a warm *underglow in her hair.
a. 1825. Forby, Voc. E. Anglia, *Under-grup, an under-drain; a concealed water course in wet soils.
1611. Florio, Sottostanza, an *vnder-lodging.
1856. Ruskin, Mod. Paint., IV. V. xv. § 2. The most fantastic curves, governed by some grand *under-sweep like that of a tide.
1899. B. Capes, Lady of Darkness, xviii. 150. There must be *underwarmth somewhere for the surface so to flower into colour.
d. Denoting something which is either covered (completely or partially) by, or is subordinate to, something of the same kind. An early example of this is underwood (1325), followed later by undergrowth, -shrub (c. 1600). Other examples are mostly of recent date, and show considerable extension of the usage, as in underfleece, -fur, -marking, etc.
1866. Sartoris, Week in French Country Ho. (1902), 33. Working like a galley-slave in order to get the underpainting of my picture done before coming over.
1873. E. Spon, Workshop Receipts, Ser. I. 420/1. The colour should be a trile darker than the undergraining.
1901. Smithsonian Rep., 405. Where sheep have been allowed to graze the undervegetation is destroyed.
1909. Mrs. Smith Lewis, Codex Climaci Rescr., Introd. p. xiii. The under-script of a palimpsest is seldom homogeneous.
e. With the sense of situated on the under side.
1888. Century Mag., XXXVI. 703/1. Its head and back are blue, its throat and breast red, and its underfeathering white.
1902. Cornish, Naturalist Thames, 45. The particoloured grey and yellow under-colouring of their wings.
II. Denoting inferiority in rank or importance.
6. a. With designations of persons, esp. of subordinate officers or officials. This ise occurs in OE. in undercyning, -diacon, -ʓeréfa, -ládtéow, -þéow, becomes common in ME., and is extensively employed from the latter part of the 16th century. The meaning is however as frequently expressed by SUB- 5 a and 6.
Examples of under- prefixed to a term of general import are rare, but underman occurs in the 14th cent., underbeing, underfellow in the 16th, underswain in the 17th.
1751. Eng. Gazetteer, s.v. Preston, It is governed by a mayor, recorder, 8 aldermen, 4 *under-aldermen.
1687. Miége, Gt. Fr. Dict., II. *Under-Brigadier, Son-Brigadier.
1611. Cotgr., Soubchantre, an *vnder-chaunter inferiour to the head Chaunter.
1857. Livingstone, Trav. (1861), 189. An imposing embassy from Masiko. It consisted of all his *underchiefs.
1888. J. S. Winter, Bootles Childr., ii. All the lads had gone home for the night, with the exception of the *under-coachman.
1708. J. Chamberlayne, St. Gt. Brit. (1710), 569. A Chief-Crier, Two *Under-Criers, Two Ushers.
1846. Etheridge, Syrian Churches, 200. After which is read the Gospel in Syriac; an *underdeacon reading it in the vernacular Arabic.
1854. Poultry Chron., I. 265/1. Some competent feeder to look after the whole, and see that the *under-feeders are constantly at work.
1891. Daily News, 30 Nov., 6/6. The first footman had an altercation with an *under-footman.
1611. Cotgr., Subministrateur, an *vnderfurnisher, an inferior officer.
1876. E. A. Abbott in Contemp. Rev., June, 141. To serve him as *under-gamekeeper.
1708. J. Chamberlayne, St. Gt. Brit. (1710), 707. Edinburgh-Castle: Master-Gunner, 6 *Under-Gunners.
1820. Scott, Abbot, iv. The famous university of Leyden, where they lack an *underjanitor.
1611. Florio, Sequestratore, an *vnderiudge, an arbitrator.
1898. Atlantic Monthly, LXXXII. 474. The cooks and the under-cooks, the laundresses, the *under-laundress.
1852. Bailey, Festus (ed. 5), 333. The more We feel of poesie do we become Like God in love and power,*undermakers.
1818. Mrs. Shelley, Frankenst., ii. (1897), 6. Twice I actually hired nyself as an *under-mate in a Greenland whaler.
1839. J. Rogers, Antipopopr., x. § 2. 253. We read nothing in Holy Scripture about the submediation or the *undermediators.
1868. Holme Lee, B. Godfrey, xxiii. 122. Rebecca was the *under-nurse.
1771. Ledwich, Antiq. Sarisb., 223. He joined himself to a tallow-chandler, as an *underpartner with him in the business.
1648. Hexham, II. Een Onder-Prioor, an *Vnder-Priour.
1818. Moore, Fudge Fam. Paris, vi. 32. Friends, whom his Lordship keeps in store, As *under-saviours of the nation.
1614. Selden, Titles Honor, 267. Earle, Churl, Thane, and *Underthane.
1559. Aylmer, Harborowe, L 2 b. Then must the hyghe Shrife be his frende: And the *vnderthefe (vndershrife I should saye) his man.
1748. Melmoth, Fitzosborne Lett., lvi. (1749), II. 79. All that numerous *undertribe in the commonwealth of literature.
1818. Scott, Hrt. Midl., xiii. Just the post of *under-turnkey, for I understand theres a vacancy.
1706. Phillips (ed. Kersey), Sub-vicar, an *Under-Vicar.
1611. Cotgr., Arriere-vasseur, an vnder-vassall; or, an *vnder-villaine.
1657. J. Watts, Vind. Ch. Eng., 125. The ministers are Christs *under-vine-dressers.
1854. Poultry Chron., I. 388/1. Abounding with game which, by game-keepers and *under-watchers, was rigorously preserved.
b. With other nouns, in the sense of subordinate, subsidiary, minor. An early instance of this is underhelp (1579); others, such as underaccident, -action, -cause, -ministry, etc., occur in the 17th cent. In later use the tendency is to employ either sub- (see SUB- 5 b, c, d) or an adjective, but A. Tucker, Light Nat. (1768), has under-aim, -plan, -scheme, -society, -species, -stage.
1598. Florio, Sottodistintione, an *vnder-distinction, or subdistinction.
1711. Swift, Jrnl. Stella, 28 April (1901), 203. All the *under-hints there are mine too.
1691. Norris, Pract. Disc., 205. The Desire of Happiness governs all the *undermotions of the Man.
1874. Stubbs, Const. Hist., I. v. 100. The Lathe and the Rape may represent the *undershires of the Heptarchic kingdom.
1648. Hexham, II. Onder-vocght, *Under-tuterage, or *Under-wardship.
7. With verbs, denoting reduction to (or acceptance of) an inferior or subordinate standing. Chiefly OE., as underbíeʓan to subject, underbúʓan to submit, underþéodan to subject, subjugate; and ME., as undercast, -put, -thew. See also undershining, -sphere, -study, -sweat, -thrown.
Under- is rarely employed in the sense of SUB- 9 (b); Florio (1611), has under-appoint rendering It. sottodelegare.
III. In figurative senses.
8. With verbs. a. In OE., various secondary meanings of under- are represented by such verbs as under(be)ʓinnan to begin or attempt, underfón to receive, underʓietan, -niman, -standan to understand, undersécan to investigate. Several of these survive in ME., as underfo, underʓete, -nim, -stand, underseche; and a few more are added, as underfind, -grope, -take. In later examples the sense is usually that of (secret) investigation, as underfeel, -look, -search, -watch, or of unobserved action, as underhear. In addition to the verbs some agent-nouns occur, as under-dealer, -plotter, -puller.
Florio (1611), renders It. sottosapere, -ridere by underknow, -smile.
b. From the end of the 16th cent. under- is used with verbs in the sense of below (= at a lower rate than) another person, as in underbid, -buy, -sell, -spend, -work.
c. Occasionally the sense is to a point or degree below what is normal or customary, as in undercooled, -hew.
d. Very rarely, subordinate action is implied, as in underlet = sublet.
9. With nouns, denoting actions, etc., which lie or are kept beneath the surface or in the background. An early instance is undercraft (c. 1400); others occur from the 17th cent., as underdealing, -thought. Modern instances are chiefly of an individual character.
1857. Heavysege, Saul (1869), 421. Thine eyeballs roll, As if from some great *under-agitation.
1830. Coleridge, Church & State (1839), 274. A sort of *under-consciousness blends with our dreams.
1876. T. Hardy, Ethelberta, xix. Simply an *underfeeling I have that [etc.].
1863. Bp. S. Wilberforce, in Life (1882), III. 100. The curious *under-history of Trenchs appointment to the archbishopric.
1817. Coleridge, Biog. Lit. (1907), II. 207. There is a dull *underpain that survives the smart which it had aggravated.
1876. Mrs. Whitney, Sights & Ins., II. iii. 362. To me, who felt an *underpulse in all these things, there was a plain perception [etc.].
1732. Sir C. Wogan, Lett. to Swift, 27 Feb. A very grave phiz that carried a wicked *undersneer.
1893. Nation (N.Y.), 29 June 475/3. The effect is artistic, while the *undersuggestion is scientific.
1805. Wordsw., Prel., VI. 558. Something of stern mood, an *under-thirst Of vigour seldom utterly allayed.
b. With words denoting sound of a subdued or subordinate character, esp. when produced or perceived at the same time as a louder or more distinct sound. (See also UNDERBREATH, -SONG, -STRAIN, -TONE, -TUNE, -VOICE.)
1904. E. Rickert, Reaper, 10. Through the seethe and snap of the wind he could hear the *underbeat of the surf on the rocks below.
1863. Is. Williams, Baptistery, II. xxiv. (1874), 102. Or deep Gregorian chaunt of plaintive *underchime.
1893. E. H. Barker, Wand. Southern Waters, 43. That continuous *undercry of the iron tongues.
1815. Scott, Guy M., iv. She answered in the same tone of *under-dialogue.
1832. J. P. Kennedy, Swallow B., xxi. Ducks and geese, with a sedate *under-gabble, like that of old burghers in conversation.
1892. Meredith, Poems, Spring, 134. But now the common life has come; The grasses one vast *underhum.
1859. Mrs. Craik, Romantic Tales, 182. The low, womans voice, whose *under-melody, lost amidst the tempests of life, was now needed to soothe its ending.
a. 1835. Mrs. Hemans, Poems, Flowers & Music (1875), 572. I caught an *under-music of lament in the streams voice.
1876. Meredith, Beauch. Career, I. iii. 39. He quoted sayings in which neither his ear nor Wilmores detected the *underring Stukely was famous for.
1874. Lanier, Poems, Corn, 28. Fragmentary whispers, blown From *undertalks of leafy souls unknown.
1872. T. Hardy, Under Greenw. Tree, I. i. Dick Dewy continued his tune in an *under-whistle.
IV. Denoting insufficiency or defect.
10. a. With verbs. From the latter part of the 16th cent., by contrast with OVER- 27, under- is prefixed to verbs to imply that the action falls below the usual or proper standard, and thus acquires the sense of at too low a rate, too low, too little, insufficiently. Early instances are underprize, -value, others of slightly later date are underbuy, -charge, -rate, reckon, -sell, etc. Subsequently the use becomes extremely common, especially in the sense of insufficiently, not enough, and occurs frequently with pa. pples. and ppl. adjs. Examples of vbl. sbs. (cf. b) are also included in the following illustrations.
1885. Pall Mall G., 14 Feb., 3/2. The over-worked and *under-accommodated class of reporters.
1862. Lond. Rev., 16 Aug., 141. Another baker will make his loaves originally of short weight, and will then *underbake them.
1901. Scotsman, March, 7/8. *Under-ballasted vessels were a source of danger to themselves. Ibid. Accidents to British ships due to *under-ballasting.
1832. St. James Gaz., 3 April, 5/2. The Cantabs were slightly *underboated this year.
1725. Fam. Dict., s.v. Brewing, This is generally attributed to their *under-boiling their strong Worts.
1889. Boys Own Paper, 3 Aug., 700/2. My boat being considerably *under-canvassed, the weather was rarely too bad for me to make a start.
1866. Ecclesiologist, XXVII. 220. The reproach usual in French provincial towns, of being lamentably *under-churched.
1737. Waterland, Eucharist, 202. But there may be danger of *under-commenting, as well as of interpreting too high.
1861. Mrs. Beeton, Bk. Househ. Managem., xxxviii. 893. If the patient be allowed to eat vegetables, never send them up *undercooked.
1892. Photogr. Ann., II. 259. It might have been printed from a much *under-developed negative.
1889. Anthonys Photogr. Bull., II. 155. We lose the strength by over-timing and *under-developing.
1778. [W. H. Marshall], Minutes Agric., Digest, 134. Whose Farm is for ever under-stocked, *under-dunged, and under-tilled!
1856. Miss Yonge, Daisy Chain, II. vi. 393. He has been *under-educated, and is not very brilliant.
1648. T. Hill, Spring of Grace, 11. We are apt to overgrieve or *undergrieve at crosses.
1856. Odling, Anim. Chem., 144. Strongly suggestive of these animals being, so to speak, *under-lunged.
1778. [W. H. Marshall], Minutes Agric., Digest, 66. Re-load *under-made Hay.
1847. Helps, Friends in C., I. iv. 67. An ugly phantom of a caricature which *under-mimics its wisdom, over-acts its folly.
1884. Spectator, 4 Oct., 1298/2. If only the pure Milesian race should own the soil the country would be *under-populated.
1882. Garden, 25 Feb., 135/3. Use manure water freely to all [ferns] that are *under-potted.
1849. Maurice, Lett., in Life (1884), II. 9. A misunderstanding, contraction or *under-realising of the truths of Gods Absolute, Fatherly Love.
1776. Adam Smith, W. N., I. x. I. (1867), I. 105. In point of pecuniary gain they are generally *under-recompensed.
1884. Manch. Exam., 16 Oct., 5/1. We are told that the counties are enormously *under-represented.
1881. Daily Tel., 20 Oct. An absurdly *under-rigged steamer.
1844. Stephens, Bk. Farm, II. 673. The *under-ripened seed of the bad season of 1841 produced the good crop of potatoes of 1842.
1832. Nat. Philos., Electric., ii. § 49. 13 (L.U.K.). In a deficiency of fluid, or in matter *under-saturated.
1786. Trans. Soc. Arts, IV. 102. The land was *under seeded.
1872. H. W. Beecher, Lect. Preach., iv. 109. Some men *under-sleep, and some over-sleep; some cal too much, and some too little.
1900. Christian, 15 Nov., 9/1. We frequently have to pay excess on delivery of *understamped letters.
1778. Under-tilled [see under-dunged above].
1839. Anthonys Photogr. Bull., II. 227. The negative was so badly *undertimed as to be useless.
1861. O. W. Holmes, Pages fr. Old Vol. Life (1891), 9. They are very commonly pallid, *undervitalized, shy, sensitive creatures.
1832. Prop. Reg. Instr. Cavalry, III. 97. The Troop Leaders may know whether to over-wheel or *under-wheel.
ellipt. 1628. Feltham, Resolves, II. xxviii. 89. I hold it a greater iniurie to bee ouer-valued, then vnder.
1847. C. Brontë, Jane Eyre, vii. The under or the over dressing of a dish.
b. With nouns, in the sense of insufficient, deficient, defective, contrasted with OVER- 29. Examples occur in the 17th cent. in underprice, -rate, -value, -wages, and are not uncommon in later use, though less frequent than the verbal forms.
1895. Westm. Gaz., 8 Aug., 2/1. What the world is suffering from is under-production of everything and *under-consumption.
1891. Lancet, 14 March, 624/2. Cases of undergrowth, and *underdevelopment.
1892. Photogr. Ann., II. 59. When from under-development, only a poor slide results.
1895. Pop. Sci. Monthly, July, 380. The result is always over-eating and *under-exercise.
1851. M. Arnold, Pop. Educ. France, 11. I shall proceed to point out some inconveniences of *under-government.
1899. Patten, Developm. Eng. Th., vi. 382. Overnutrition as well as *undernutrition weakens the body.
c. 1900. Bucks Handbk. Med. Sci., VI. 158 (Cent. Suppl.). The foul air makes a direct escape, providing it meets or passes no compartment on its way in which *under-pressure exists.
1887. Pall Mall G., 28 Feb., 1/2. Over production may exist in manufactures owing to *under production of crops.
1894. Westm. Gaz., 14 Sept., 1/3. More important is the *under-representation of the big societies.
1864. Ruskin, in Daily Tel., 31 Oct. An *under-supply of wages and an over-supply of labourers.
1883. Gresley, Gloss. Coal-m., 268. *Under ventilation, too little air circulating in a mine.
c. With adjectives under- is rarely employed as the opposite of OVER- 28, except when directly suggested by the latter, e.g., under-scrupulous as the converse of over-scrupulous; underhonest (Shaks.) in contrast to overproud; under-ripe, etc.
11. In words formed with under- the stress is variable. Normally it falls on the stem in verbs (including participles in predicative use) and on the prefix in nouns, adjectives, and attributive participles, with a secondary stress on prefix or stem respectively, whenever form or sense makes a double stressing natural or necessary. Even in verbs, however, the prefix naturally takes either the main or an equal stress whenever it becomes emphatic through contrast either with the simple verb or with a compound in OVER-.
12. Compounds in which the two parts are not felt to be distinct are written as one word without a hyphen. In other formations the use of the hyphen is variable, and depends to a great extent on the form or the frequency of the word. Complete separation of the prefix, common in older usage, is now restricted to instances in which under may be taken as an adjective, Examples of these have been included under the compounds, as no clear distinction can be drawn between the two.