breakfast
/ˈbrɛkfəst/
noun
Origin
Old English
brecan + fæst — break + fast (abstinence)
Overview
Meaning Now
- The first meal of the day, typically eaten in the morning.
- The act of breaking the fast of the night.
Literal older meaning
breaking of the fast
Language path
Proto-Germanic → Old English → English
Earliest form
brekfast
Earliest period
13th century
Journey
The term reflects the necessity of ending the overnight period of fasting while one sleeps. Before the word 'breakfast' became standard, the first meal was often simply called 'morning meat' or 'morn-mete' in Old English.
Evolution
- Proto-Germanic
*brekaną + *fastuz
“to break + firm/fixed”
- Old English
brecan + fæsten
“to break a fast”
Used as a verb phrase before noun usage developed.
- Middle English
brekfast
“first meal of the day”
First recorded as a noun in the 13th century.
- Early Modern English
breakfast
“first meal of the day”
Spelling stabilized to modern form.
Connections
Word parts
break
root
to shatter or fracture
fast
root
abstinence from food
Related across languages
Dutch
ontbijt
breakfast (literally 'un-bite')
German
Frühstück
breakfast (literally 'early piece')
Related words
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External references use DefinedTerm semantics.