Revised 2013 More entries for "heading"
headingnoun
Factsheet
What does the noun heading mean?
There are 21 meanings listed in OED's entry for the noun heading, two of which are labelled obsolete. See ‘Meaning & use’ for definitions, usage, and quotation evidence.
heading has developed meanings and uses in subjects including
How common is the noun heading?
About 9occurrences per million words in modern written English
| 1750 | 0.24 |
| 1760 | 0.27 |
| 1770 | 0.29 |
| 1780 | 0.25 |
| 1790 | 0.25 |
| 1800 | 0.27 |
| 1810 | 0.28 |
| 1820 | 0.33 |
| 1830 | 0.45 |
| 1840 | 0.68 |
| 1850 | 1.0 |
| 1860 | 1.6 |
| 1870 | 2.2 |
| 1880 | 2.9 |
| 1890 | 3.7 |
| 1900 | 5.0 |
| 1910 | 6.3 |
| 1920 | 7.6 |
| 1930 | 8.7 |
| 1940 | 9.3 |
| 1950 | 9.4 |
| 1960 | 9.1 |
| 1970 | 9.0 |
| 1980 | 9.2 |
| 1990 | 9.1 |
| 2000 | 8.9 |
| 2010 | 8.6 |
How is the noun heading pronounced?
British English
/ˈhɛdɪŋ/
HED-ing
U.S. English
/ˈhɛdɪŋ/
HED-ing
Where does the noun heading come from?
Earliest known use
Middle English
The earliest known use of the noun heading is in the Middle English period (1150—1500).
OED's earliest evidence for heading is from around 1390–1.
heading is formed within English, by derivation.
Etymons: head v., -ing suffix1; head n.1, -ing suffix1.
In other dictionaries
Nearby entries
- headhood, n.c1449
- head house, n.1516–
- head-hung, adj.1632–
- headhunt, v.1851–
- headhunter, n.1800–
- headhunting, n.1817–
- headhunting, adj.1849–
- headily, adv.a1500–
- head-in-air, adj. & n.1880–
- headiness, n.1447–
- heading, n.1390–
- heading, adj.1778–
- heading brick, n.1731–
- heading course, n.1659–
- heading dog, n.1913–
- heading joint, n.1773–
- heading knife, n.1574–
- heading machine, n.1795–
- heading stone, n.1746–
- heading up, n.1843–
- headish, adj.1530–
Meaning & use
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Etymology
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Pronunciation
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Forms
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Frequency
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Compounds & derived words
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Entry history for heading, n.
heading, n. was revised in June 2013
heading, n. was last modified in September 2023
oed.com is a living text, updated every three months. Modifications may include:
- further revisions to definitions, pronunciation, etymology, headwords, variant spellings, quotations, and dates;
- new senses, phrases, and quotations.
Revisions and additions of this kind were last incorporated into heading, n. in September 2023.
Earlier versions of heading, n. were published in:
OED First Edition (1898)
OED Second Edition (1989)
Cite
Chicago
Oxford English Dictionary, s.v. “”, . <>
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MLA9
“”. Oxford English Dictionary, Oxford University Press, , <>
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