cased
UK[keɪst]US[keɪst]
adj
enclosed in a protective case or covering.
v
(past tense and past participle of 'case') to enclose in a case; to surround or cover as with a case.
v
(past tense and past participle of 'case') to examine or inspect a place, typically with intent to commit a crime.
Etymology
the verb 'case' originates from the noun 'case', which entered middle english from old french 'cas', itself derived from latin 'casus' meaning "a fall, chance, event." the latin term stems from the verb 'cadere', "to fall." the semantic evolution is intriguing: from the literal concept of "a fall," it broadened to mean "an event" or "a situation," and then to "a container" (perhaps from the idea of something that befalls or contains an object). the verb 'to case' meaning "to enclose" follows naturally from the noun for a container. the slang meaning "to reconnoiter" emerged in the 19th century, likely from the idea of examining the particulars or "circumstances" of a situation before acting.
Analysis
the word 'cased' is the past tense and past participle form of the verb 'case', with the addition of the inflectional suffix '-ed'. the root 'case' is a simplex morpheme.
Examples
the delicate instrument was cased in shock-absorbing foam for transport.
the detectives had cased the jewelry store for weeks before the attempted robbery.
the book arrived beautifully cased in a leather-bound slipcover.