▪ I.author,n.|ˈɔːθə(r)|Forms: 4–6 autour, 4–7 autor, 5 awtor, autere, 5–6 auctoure, -tore, actour, -tor, 5–7 auctour, -tor, 6 aucthour, 6–7 aucthor, 6–8 authour, 6– author.[a.AF.autour=OF.autor, later auteur,ad.L. auctor, agent-nounf.augēre to make to grow, originate, promote, increase. Already in 14th c. F., occasionally written auct- after L., which became the ordinary spelling inEng.in 15–16th c., and was further corrupted to act-, frommed.L. confusion of auctor and actor. The spelling auth- seems to have been at first a scribal variant of aut- (cf.rhetor, rethour) in 15–16th c. F., and appeared inEng.c 1550, being at first applied to the form auctour so as to make aucthour. It is impossible to say to what extent these factitious spellings affected the spoken word, or when the modern pronunciation was established.]1.gen.The person who originates or gives existence to anything:a.An inventor, constructor, or founder. Now obs.of things material;exc.as in b.c1384WyclifDeEccl.ix, Sel.Wks.1871 III. 359Þis[lawe]mut passe alle oþir siþ þe auctor is þe beste.
c1386ChaucerParson's Tale 808The auctour[v.r. auctor, actour, autere]of matrimonye, that is Crist.
1447O. BokenhamSeyntysIntrod.1The efficyent cause is the auctour Wych..doth hys labour To acomplyse the begunne matere.
1576LambardePeramb. Kent (1826) 297One Robert Creuequer, the authour of the Castle.
1663GerbierCounsel C iij a,The Author of the Piazza.
1699Lond.Gaz.No.3532/4 (Advt.)The Author of the Rich Cordial called Nectar and Ambrosia, is Removed to Mr. Hugh Newmans.
1766Goldsm.Vic.W. xxix. (1857) 211The Authour of our religion.
1865MillLiberty ii. 18/1The authors and abettors of the rule.
b.(of all, of nature, of the universe, etc.) The Creator.c1374ChaucerTroylus iii. 1016But o þou Ioue, o autour of nature!
c1400Apol.Loll. 44Crist, autor of al þing.
1508FisherWks.i. 198Auctour and maker of all thynges.
1714AddisonSpect.No.571 ⁋7The great Author of Nature.
1853RobertsonSerm.Ser.iii. iv. (1872) 55The Father the Author of our being..He is the Author of all life.
c.He who gives rise to or causes an action, event, circumstance, state, or condition of things.1413Lydg.Pylgr. Sowle i. xvii. 14An open lyer and autour of al falshede.
c1440GestaRom.ii. v. (1838) 287Auctore of pride is the fende; auctor of concupiscence of eyene is the worlde.
1606Shakes.Ant.&Cl.ii. vi. 138The immediate Author of their variance.
1609SkeneReg.Maj. 6Ane lover, and ane auctor of peace.
1653HolcroftProcopius i. 15Authour of the mischiefs.
1865MillLiberty ii. 16/1The authors of such splendid benefits.
1884Chr.World 5 June 417/1The author of the Zulu war.
†d.He who authorizes or instigates; the prompter or mover. Obs.1570R. AschamScholem. (Arb.) 69Som..in Courte were authors that honest Citizens..shoulde watche at euerie gate.
1578TimmeCalvin onGen.159Neither will I be the author to give liberty.
1588Shakes.Tit.A. i. i. 435The Gods..for-fend, I should be Authour to dishonour you!
1656HobbesLiberty, etc. (1841) 214Author, is he which owneth an action, or giveth a warrant to do it.
2.spec.†a.One who begets; a father, an ancestor. Obs.(exc.in author of his being:cf.1 c.)c1300K. Alis. 4519My riches, and my tressours, And alle hath do myn autors.
1660H. BloomeArchit.A b,Tuscanus, who is reported to be the generall Author of the Germans.
1718PopeIliad vi. 254The honour'd author of my birth and name.
1823LambEliaSer.i. i. (1865) 9Old Walter Plumer (his reputed author).
1850ThackerayPendennis xxvii. (1863) 227The author of her being, her persecuted..murdered father.
3. a.esp.and absol.One who sets forth written statements; the composer or writer of a treatise or book. (Now often used to include authoress.)c1380WyclifWks.(1880) 267Ȝif holy writt be fals, certis god autor þer-of is fals.
c1385ChaucerL.G.W. 88Of manye a geste As autourys seyn.
1432–50tr.Higden (1865) I. 7A tretys, excerpte of diverse labores of auctores.
1509BarclayShyp of Folys (1874) II. 26The noble actor plinius.
1578LyteDodoens 499Wherof both Turner and this Aucthor do write.
1678R. LestrangeSeneca's Mor.To Reader, My Choice of the Authour, and of the Subject.
1726GayFables i. x,No author ever spar'd a brother; Wits are game-cocks to one another.
1771BurkeCorr.(1844) I. 275,I am not the author of Junius, and..I know not the author of that paper.
1818ByronBeppo lxxii,One hates an author that is all author, fellows In foolscap uniforms turned up with ink, So very anxious, clever, fine, and jealous.
1880Sat.Rev.20 Nov. 653What size will the author's writings attain when she gets beyond her studies?
b.elliptically put for: An author's writings.1601Shakes.Twel. N. ii. v. 175,I will reade politicke Authours.
1727SwiftTo EarlOxf.Wks.1755 III. ii. 42Cheap'ning old authors on a stall.
1759RobertsonHist.Scotl.I. ii. 141Acquainted with the Greek and Roman authors.
1865Sat.Rev.5 Aug. 168/1The names of authors whom they never read.
4.The person on whose authority a statement is made; an authority, an informant. (Usually with poss.pron.‘my, his author.’) arch.or Obs.c1384ChaucerH. Fame 314Non other auttour[v.r. auctour, authour]a-legge I.
c1440Partonope 392That ys french which ys myn auctoure.
1529MoreDyaloge 88 b,I wold se a better author therof than such an heretyque as Luther.
1697W. DampierVoy.(1729) I. 350Islands that abound with Gold and Cloves, If I may credit my Author Prince Jeoly, who was born on one of them.
1784ReidLet.in Wks.I. 63/2,I suspected that the gentleman who was my author had given some colouring to this story.
†5.One who has authority over others; a director, ruler, commander. Obs.1382WyclifGal.iv. 2He is under tutours and actouris[v.r. autours; 1388 tutoris;Vulg.auctoribus.]
6.attrib.and in Comb.See also author-craft. Frequent inappos.use.1711ShaftesburyCharac.(1737) I. 214To recommend this author-charactor to our future princes.
Ibid.226Wherever the author-practice and liberty of the pen has..prevail'd.
a1806D. WordsworthTour Scotland in Jrnls.(1941) I. 297The author-tourists have quarrelled with the architecture of it.
1830LambCorr.cxiii. 317How comfortable to author-rid folks.
1835CourtMag.VI. 51/1His peculiarity as an author-actor.
1860DickensLett.(1881) III. 195All through my author life.
1865Macm.Mag.Dec. 156Author-created visitants.
1898Daily News 21 May 2/2My friend the author-statesman.
1903Book Lover Sept. 4/1The author-artist has been as successful with his pen as with his brush.
1905DailyChron.16 Dec. 8/5The brilliant young author-manager.
1909Westm.Gaz.15 Dec. 1/2There was only one author-producer in his experience in whose judgment the actor could always trust implicitly.
1922JoyceUlysses 449Bloom. Well, I follow a literary occupation. Author-journalist.
†7.The editor of a journal. Obs.1697Flying Post May 18–20Printed by T. Snowden..for the Author.
1724Brit.Jrnl.(imprint)London: Printed for T. Warner, at the Black Boy in Pater-Noster-Row, where Advertisements and Letters to the Author are taken in.
1753Jackson'sOxf.Jrnl.i. 5 May ad fin.Printed by W. Jackson in the High-Street, Oxford: By whom Letters to the Author, Articles of News, and Advertisements are taken.
▪ II.author,v.[f.prec.n.]1.To be the author of an action; to originate, cause, occasion. Obs.exc.inU.S.use: to be the author or originator of (a book, play, remark, etc.).1596ChapmanIliad i. 231The last foul thing Thou ever author'dst.
1602WarnerAlb.Eng.xiii. lxxviii. (1612) 322A good God may not aucthor noysome things.
1632Sir J. Eliot inFour C.Eng.Lett.65The divine blessing..which authors all the happiness we receive.
1940Time 15 Apr. 55/2Her father..authored several successful plays and movies.
1957W. C. HandyFather of Blues xxi. 288He once authored the famous Ziegfeld Midnight Roof productions.
1959M. ChamberlinDear Friends & Darling Romans (1960) viii. 182The saying was authored by some husband.
1967Boston Sunday Herald 30 Apr. vi. 2/6She has authored a reference book on the Genus Ilex in China.
†2.To be the author of a statement; to state, declare, say. Obs.1602WarnerAlb.Eng.Epit.(1612) 352Brute is authored to haue arriued in this Iland..in the year of the worlds age 2855.
1632Mass.& Field Fatal Dowry iv. ii,More of him I dare not author.
