page
UK[peɪdʒ]US[peɪdʒ]
n
One side of a sheet of paper in a book, magazine, etc.
n
A young person who works as an assistant, especially in a formal setting or as a trainee knight.
v
To call for someone over a public address system or by sending a message.
v
To turn the pages of a book, etc.
Etymology
The word 'page' presents a fascinating case of homonymy, where two distinct etymological paths led to the same modern spelling and sound. The 'paper page' traces back to Latin 'pagina', which itself derived from the root 'pangere' meaning 'to fasten' or 'to fix', referring to the fastening of strips of papyrus into a scroll or column of writing. The 'servant page' comes from Latin 'pagius', likely borrowed from Greek 'paidion', a diminutive of 'pais' (child), emphasizing the youth of the attendant. Over centuries, through Old French, these separate words ('page' from 'pagina' and 'page' from 'pagius') entered Middle English with identical forms, merging phonetically while retaining their distinct semantic fields, a process known as convergent evolution in linguistics.
Analysis
The modern English word 'page' is a simplex word derived from two distinct and historically unrelated Latin sources that converged into identical spelling. The noun meaning 'sheet of paper' originates from Latin 'pagina' (a sheet, page, column). The noun meaning 'youthful attendant' originates from Latin 'pagius' (a young servant, perhaps from Greek 'paidion' meaning 'little boy').
Examples
Please turn to page 45 of your textbook.
The hotel will page the guest when their taxi arrives.
In medieval times, a young page would serve a knight.