Wiktionary

summit

See also: Summit

English edit

WOTD – 31 July 2024

Etymology 1 edit

PIE word
*upó

The noun is derived from Late Middle English somet, somete (“head, top”) [and other forms],[1] from Anglo-Norman sumet and Middle French sommet (masculine), somete, sommette (“top of a thing; highest point of a mountain”) (feminine) (modern French sommet), from Old French somet, sommette, from som, sum (“highest point, summit”) + -et (suffix forming diminutive masculine nouns), -ete, -ette (suffix forming diminutive feminine nouns). Som, sum are derived from Latin summum (“top, summit”), a noun use of the neuter of summus (“greatest, highest; top, uppermost”, adjective)[2] (ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *upó (“below, under”) + *-m̥mós, *-tm̥mós (“suffix forming superlative adjectives”)). The modern English spelling was influenced by summity (“height or top of a thing; utmost degree, perfection”) (obsolete).[3]

The verb is derived from the noun.[4]

Pronunciation edit

Noun edit

summit (plural summits)

  1. The topmost point or surface of a thing; the apex, the peak.
    Synonyms: acme, (obsolete) summity, zenith; see also Thesaurus:summit
    2. The highest point of a hill, mountain, or similar geographical feature.
      In summer, it is possible to hike to the summit of Mount Shasta.
    3. (mathematics) A vertex of a polygon or polyhedron.
    4. (nautical, rail transport, road transport) The highest point of a canal, railway, road, etc.
    5. (obsolete)
      1. (botany) Synonym of anther (“the pollen-bearing part of the stamen of a flower”); also (rare), synonym of stigma (“the sticky part of a flower that receives pollen during pollination”)
      2. (crystallography, rare) One of the two vertices of a crystal with a rhombohedral shape where the angles of each face are equal; also, the highest point of a crystal with a pyramidal or tetrahedral shape.
  2. (figurative)
    1. The highest point of achievement, development, etc., that can be reached; the acme, the pinnacle.
    2. (politics)
      1. (archaic) The highest level of political leadership.
      3. (by extension) An assembly or gathering of the leaders of countries to discuss issues of international significance; also (loosely), an important or high-level gathering or meeting.
        They met for an international summit on environmental issues.
Usage notes edit

Colloquially, sense 1.1 is used for only the highest point of a mountain, whereas in mountaineering any point that is higher than surrounding points is a summit, such as the South Summit of Mount Everest. These are distinguished by topographic prominence as subsummits (low prominence) or independent summits (high prominence).

Derived terms edit
Related terms edit
Translations edit
topmost point or surface of a thing — see apex,‎ peak
vertex of a polygon or polyhedron — see vertex
highest point of achievement, development, etc., that can be reached — see acme,‎ pinnacle

Verb edit

summit (third-person singular simple present summits, present participle summiting or summitting, simple past and past participle summited or summitted)

  1. (transitive, climbing, informal) To reach the summit (noun sense 1.1) of (a mountain).
  2. (intransitive)
    1. (climbing, informal) To reach the summit of a mountain.
    2. (politics) To attend a summit (noun sense 2.2.2).
Translations edit

Etymology 2 edit

A variant of summat.

Pronunciation edit

Pronoun edit

summit

  1. (England, especially Lancashire, Yorkshire, informal) Alternative spelling of summat (“something”)
    I need to get summit to eat.

References edit

  1. ^ “somet, n.”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007.
  2. ^ “summit, n.”, in Lexico, Dictionary.com; Oxford University Press, 2019–2022.
  3. ^ “summit, n.”, in OED Online  ⁠, Oxford, Oxfordshire: Oxford University Press, September 2023.
  4. ^ “summit, v.2”, in OED Online  ⁠, Oxford, Oxfordshire: Oxford University Press, July 2023; “summit, v.”, in Lexico, Dictionary.com; Oxford University Press, 2019–2022.

Further reading edit

Anagrams edit

Italian edit

Etymology edit

Unadapted borrowing from English summit.

Pronunciation edit

Noun edit

summit m (invariable)

  1. summit (gathering of leaders)
    Synonyms: vertice, conferenza

References edit

  1. ^ summit in Luciano Canepari, Dizionario di Pronuncia Italiana (DiPI)

Romanian edit

Etymology edit

Unadapted borrowing from English summit.

Noun edit

summit n (plural summituri)

  1. summit

Declension edit

Declension of summit
singular plural
indefinite articulation definite articulation indefinite articulation definite articulation
nominative/accusative (un) summit summitul (niște) summituri summiturile
genitive/dative (unui) summit summitului (unor) summituri summiturilor
vocative summitule summiturilor

Swedish edit

Verb edit

summit

  1. supine of simma (strong inflection)

Anagrams edit

Tatar edit

Etymology edit

Borrowed from English summit.

Noun edit

summit

  1. summit
    İnvestitsiä Summitı
    Investment summit

References edit

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