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medieval-religion: Scholarly discussions of medieval religion and culture From: Marjorie Greene <[log in to unmask]> > Although Merriam-Webster castigates old fogeys (like me) for objecting to using "loan" as a verb (http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/loan[2]), I would still change "loan" to "lend." "Loan me your ears" clanks on mine ;-)) a difference between U.S. & U.K. usuage, apparently, as your link to the U.S. dictionary site suggests (last two sentences below): loan Function: transitive verb Date: 13th century : lend USAGE: The verb loan is one of the words English settlers brought to America and continued to use after it had died out in Britain. Its use was soon noticed by British visitors and somewhat later by the New England literati, who considered it a bit provincial. It was flatly declared wrong in 1870 by a popular commentator, who based his objection on etymology. A later scholar showed that the commentator was ignorant of Old English and thus unsound in his objection, but by then it was too late, as the condemnation had been picked up by many other commentators. Although a surprising number of critics still voice objections, loan is entirely standard as a verb. You should note that it is used only literally; lend is the verb used for figurative expressions, such as “lending a hand” or “lending enchantment.” and the OED: Now chiefly U.S. v., trans. To grant the loan of; to lend. c1200 Vices & Virtues (1888) 77 Gif u him lanst ani ing of inen. c1205 LAY. 3680 Ich e wulle lanen of mine leode-folc fif hundred schipes. Ibid. 6247 Ic eow wulle lanen [etc.]. 1542-3 Act 34 & 35 Hen. VIII, c. 2 §1 Lonyng or leying out the same for gaines in purchasing landes. c1640 J. SMYTH Lives Berkeleys (1883) I. 203 In yeares of dearth and Scarcity, [he] loaned to many of them..wheat and other corne out of his grayneries. 1644 J. LANGLEY Mournf. Note of Dove 20 By way of location, or loaning them out. 1729 B. FESSENDEN in N. Eng. Hist. & Gen. Reg. (1859) XIII. 32 Gershom Tobey loans Oxen. 1740 Connect. Col. Rec. (1874) VIII. 320 The remainder of the said thirty thousand pounds..shall be loaned out to particular persons. 1785 Weston Rec. (Massach.) 19 Sept. (1893) 370 Said sum being Loned to the Treasurer by the Direction of the Town. 1803 FESSENDEN Terrible Tractorat. I. (ed. 2) 3 They will not loan me, gratis, Their jingling sing~song apparatus. 1834 J. C. CALHOUN Wks. II. 328 The power to withdraw the money from the deposit, and loan it to favorite State banks. 1847 O. A. BROWNSON Wks. V. 541 We once loaned a Protestant lady a pamphlet by an eminent Catholic divine. 1880 BONAMY PRICE in Fraser's Mag. May 674 He receives a deposit from one man; he loans it out in part..to another. 1896 N. NEWNHAM-DAVIS Three Men, etc. 172 The stalls..are barrack chairs loaned for the occasion. absol. or intr. a1325 Prose Psalter xxxvi[i]. 27 The rytful ys merciful..and lane [MS. Dubl. lene]. 1864 in WEBSTER. 1901 N. Amer. Rev. Feb. 262 The limit..within which the executive officers..may loan to a director. c ********************************************************************** To join the list, send the message: join medieval-religion YOUR NAME to: [log in to unmask] To send a message to the list, address it to: [log in to unmask] To leave the list, send the message: leave medieval-religion to: [log in to unmask] In order to report problems or to contact the list's owners, write to: [log in to unmask] For further information, visit our web site: http://www.jiscmail.ac.uk/lists/medieval-religion.html