consignment
Meaning
The act of consigning goods or the goods consigned.
A batch of goods sent or delivered, especially for sale.
Structure
Usage
The furniture arrived in a large consignment from the warehouse.
The artist sent her paintings to the gallery on consignment.
We are expecting a new consignment of books next week.
Etymology
The word 'consignment' traces its lineage to the Latin verb consignare, meaning 'to mark with a seal' or 'to certify'. This verb itself is a compound of the intensive prefix con- and the root signum (a mark or sign), implying a formal act of authentication. In commercial history, goods sent under a formal agreement were 'consigned'—marked or entrusted under the seller's seal to an agent for sale. Over time, the meaning evolved from the specific act of sealing or entrusting to encompass the broader modern concepts of the process of sending goods and the batch of goods sent, especially under an agreement where the agent pays the consignor only after the sale.
Analysis
- con: Latin prefix meaning 'together', 'with', or 'thoroughly'. It functions as an intensifier. - sign: From Latin signum, meaning 'mark', 'token', or 'seal'. It functions as the core root. - ment: Latin suffix -mentum, used to form nouns indicating an action, process, or resulting state.