C. T. Onions

A grammarian, lexicographer, fourth editor of the Dictionary, a co-editor (with Craigie) of the 1933 Supplement, Onions was born in Edgbaston, Birmingham, the son of a designer and embosser of metals, and exhibited an early interest in grammar. He obtained a London BA in 1892 and an MA in 1895, both while attending Mason College, Birmingham. A professor of English at the College introduced Onions to James Murray and in September of his final year, Murray invited Onions to join his staff, during which time he also compiled An Advanced English Syntax (1904). Later, from 1906 until 1913, he worked under Bradley and Craigie and prepared portions of M, N, R, and S. In 1914, he was appointed as the fourth editor and was responsible in that capacity for the sections Su-Sz, Wh-Working, and X, Y, Z. Onions enjoyed saying that he contributed the final entry to the Dictionary - a cross-reference Zyxt, which since it was ‘the last word’, was later made the name of a soap.

Onions enjoyed saying that he contributed the final entry to the Dictionary

His time as editor was interrupted by a stint in naval intelligence in 1918, and he was also a reader in English at Oxford from 1927 to 1949. In addition, he edited several dictionaries for Oxford University Press, the most important of which were the Shorter Oxford English Dictionary (1933) and the Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology (1966), to which he devoted his last twenty years. Onions was known for his etymological skill and his analytical powers which were demonstrated in his organization of the longest entry ‘set’, and the complex entries for ‘shall’, ‘will’, and the interrogative pronouns. He maintained his interest in the Oxford English Dictionary throughout his life. From 1940 to 1945, Onions served as Librarian at Magdalen College and students often profited from his constant presence in the Dictionary bay of the library. Because of his friendship with Burchfield, the editor of the Supplement (1972-86), Onions was always a welcome visitor to the Supplement's editorial offices, as well as a valuable advisor.

The quotation slip written by Onions appears in the entry for such, dem. a. and pron. The text reads: ‘1538 Starkey England (1878) 134 They haue theyr seruyce, such as hyt ys, al in theyr vulgare tong openly rehersyd.’ The reverse of the slip demonstrates the recycling of early OED proofs, in this case for S (for part of which Onions had overall responsibility).