changingn.1
/ˈtʃeɪn(d)ʒɪŋ/, U.S. /ˈtʃeɪndʒɪŋ/ 1. † b. Music. Variation; modulation; (also) an instance of this; = change n. 14a. Obsolete.
a. The action of modifying or altering something; an instance of this.
ΘΚΠ
the world > time > change > [noun]
wendingeOE
changing?c1225
stirringa1240
wrixlinga1240
changec1325
variancec1340
transmutationc1380
varyingc1380
whileness1382
translationc1384
alterationa1398
mutationa1398
removinga1425
revolutiona1425
shiftingc1440
changementc1450
muance1480
commutation1509
altry1527
transition1545
turning1548
novation1549
immutation?c1550
alterance1559
alienation1562
turn?1567
vicissitude1603
refraction1614
fermentationa1661
diabasis1672
parallax1677
motion1678
aliation1775
transience1946
?c1225 (?a1200) Ancrene Riwle (Cleo. C.vi) (1972) 3 Þeos riwle..is of godes heste, for þi heo is eauer an wið vten changinge.
?a1425 Mandeville's Trav. (Egerton) (1889) 77 (MED) Þe toure of Babilon..whare þe first chaungeyng of tunges was made.
c1450 J. Capgrave Solace of Pilgrims (Bodl. 423) (1911) 26 (MED) This chaungyng of templis in to chirchis.
a1500 (?1382) J. Wyclif Sel. Eng. Wks. (1871) III. 182 For chawngynge of Cristis ordynaunce.
1526 W. Bonde Pylgrimage of Perfection iii. sig. a*viv Notable alteracion or chaungyng of the partes.
1557 in Brieff Disc. Troubles Franckford (1574) p. cxxxiii The discipline and orders off the churche shalbe read openly once euery quarter..that euerie man maye..speak his minde for the chaunging and amending of it.
1616 T. Beard Retractiue from Romish Relig. xii. 497 Forging of false Treatises, corrupting of true, changing of Scriptures, and altering of mens words contrarie to their meaning, be certaine notes of heresie.
1656 J. Brinsley Three Sacred Emblems in Two Treat. sig. B6v The Ministers of the Gospell..working upon them, as by their Doctrine, so by their Examples. Both which are very Influentiall, and operative for the changing and altering of the people.
1714 B. Mandeville Fable Bees i. 106 So many various Shiftings and Changings of Modes.
1771 A. Bayly Pract. Treat. Singing & Playing 3 Affectation..is the improper changing of open and long vowels into the narrow and short.
1810 H. Fry Brief Acct. Visit of Two Female Preachers 9 Certainly it behoves men to be changed themselves, before they can become proper instruments for the changing of others.
1860 London Jrnl. 3 Nov. 703/2 Give me friends that ne'er grow cold, Hearts that know no changing.
1921 Veneers Feb. 34/1 The thing to do is to go over each and every operation and see if it is not possible to do some changing in order to make them better.
2003 S. Bochco Death by Hollywood 179 The women always seemed to think Dennis needed a little changing here and there.
ΘΚΠ
society > leisure > the arts > music > musical sound > pitch > system of sounds or intervals > [noun] > key > alteration from prevailing key
changingc1475
change1574
modulation1696
key change1877
transition1877
c1475 Court of Sapience (Trin. Cambr.) (1927) l. 2063 (MED) They woote the grownd of all syngyng, The nootes they knew therby and theyr chaungyng.
1631 E. Bevin Briefe Instr. Art of Musicke 49 Three parts to the Plain-song, composed in such sort, as euery part is made the Base or ground to the other, which causeth variety of musicke, by reason of the changing of the parts and is to be sung foure seuerall wayes.
1669 W. Penn No Cross, No Crown (ed. 2) xix. 387 That Musick they used was simple, without Art of Changings.
2. † b. A thing given in exchange. Obsolete. rare.
a. The action of substituting one thing for another, or of giving and receiving reciprocally; exchange; an instance of this.
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the world > time > change > exchange > [noun]
change?c1225
changingc1350
interchangingc1374
exchangec1384
permutationa1398
commutation1496
achange1530
chopping and changing1548
interchange1548
exchanging1553
promutation1560
intercourse1576
counterchange1579
chopping1581
counter-cambio?1592
interchangementa1616
commerce1631
swapping1695
barter1819
counterchanging1881
switching1904
va-et-vient1919
switch-around1981
the world > textiles and clothing > clothing > providing with clothing > changing clothing > [noun]
changingc1350
c1350 Psalter (BL Add. 17376) in K. D. Bülbring Earliest Compl. Eng. Prose Psalter (1891) xliii. 14 (MED) Þou seldest þy folk wyþ-outen pris, and multitude nas nouȝt in chaungynges [L. commutationibus] of hem.
a1382 Bible (Wycliffite, E.V.) (Bodl. 959) (1965) Ecclus. xxxvii. 12 With þe marchaund trete of chaunging [altered to of casting-out of schip]..with þe feld wirkere of alle werk, with þe annuel wirkere of þe fulending of þe ȝer..take þou not heede to þese in alle counseil.
a1425 (a1400) Prick of Conscience (Galba & Harl.) (1863) 1532 Many men se ofte chaungyng Of sere maners of gys of clethyng.
Promptorium Parvulorum (Harl. 221) 71 Chawngynge, or yeuynge oone thinge for a-nothere, cambium.
1548 N. Udall et al. tr. Erasmus Paraphr. Newe Test. I. Luke vi. f. lxxxviv A choppyng and chaungeyng of benefites one for an other.
1598 W. Shakespeare Love's Labour's Lost v. ii. 136 Quee. Change you Fauours two... Kath. But in this changing, What is your intent? View more context for this quotation
1611 M. Smith in Bible (King James) Transl. to Rdr. sig. B Neither was there this chopping and changing in the more ancient times onely.
1653 R. Abbot Christian Family builded by God xx. 81 This lending is a free putting over..and thus it is distinguished from buying, selling, letting, hiring, changing, and all mercenarie acts.
1701 J. Le Clerc Harmony of Evangelists 49 He was not worthy to perform the vilest Offices of a Servant to him, such as the changing of his Shoes at his return home.
1784 Weekly Entertainer 26 Apr. 397 This event..had not occasioned more confusion than the changing of a vicar of a village.
1822 W. Irving Bracebridge Hall II. 345 I have seen him throwing away tender glances upon her at the wedding dinner, during the changing of the dishes.
1896 A. Conan Doyle Rodney Stone vii. 102 It was his custom to go through a whole series of washings and changings after even the shortest journey.
1915 J. London Star Rover v. 32 Time was marked by the regular changing of the guards.
1958 Times 25 Aug. 4/1 The British sprint relay teams won their silver medals through immaculate baton changing.
2009 Guardian 8 Aug. 31/5 The response of those in charge..was a haughty guffawing and a changing of the subject.
ΘΚΠ
the world > time > change > exchange > [noun] > person or thing exchanged
pricea1300
botchmenta1425
changinga1425
exchange1490
tit for tat1546
changeling?1548
some and some1573
tip for tap1573
quid pro quo1816
a1425 J. Wyclif Sel. Eng. Wks. (1869) I. 184 (MED) What chaunginge shal a man ȝyve for his soule?
3.
a. The action of undergoing alteration or modification; an instance of this.
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the world > time > change > [noun] > undergoing change
change?c1225
changingc1350
c1350 Psalter (BL Add. 17376) in K. D. Bülbring Earliest Compl. Eng. Prose Psalter (1891) lxxvi. 10 (MED) Þis is þe chaungeinge of þe heȝe ryȝthalf.
a1398 J. Trevisa tr. Bartholomaeus Anglicus De Proprietatibus Rerum (BL Add. 27944) (1975) I. xii. xi. 621 Þe rauen haþ foure and sixty chaungynges of voys.
?a1425 tr. Guy de Chauliac Grande Chirurgie (N.Y. Acad. Med.) f. 5v (MED) Changing of herez and..teyntyng i. coloring.
c1450 Cato's Distichs (Sidney Sussex) l. 79 in Englische Studien (1906) 36 8 (MED) Wise men of maneris make changeng As time asketh and þe þing.
a1500 (?c1414) Paraphr. Seven Penitential Psalms 38 There is no changyng foundyn in the!
1535 Bible (Coverdale) Isa. iii. B The chaunginge of their countenaunce bewrayeth them.
1583 P. Barrough Methode of Phisicke iii. xix. 105 A permutation and chaunging of the thinne filmes going about the small guttes within, into a certaine liuing bodie, that will moue and stirre.
1627 J. Mayer Ecclesiastica Interpretatio 13 There is no variation or shadow of changing in him.
1659 C. Noble Moderate Answer 6 A person given to vacillations and changings.
1731 T. Johnson Ess. Moral Oblig. vi. 52 As there can be no Cause for his changing, he cannot change.
1793 Hapless Orphan I. l. 226 I regret that the season is so far advanced; not because the changing of the leaves, gives me any painful emotions.
1823 W. Scoresby Jrnl. Voy. Northern Whale-fishery 375 A mountainous sea, rendered awfully heavy and cross by the sudden changing of the wind.
1866 G. E. Street in O. Shipley Church & World 398 The history of the art of northern nations is almost entirely the story of a gradual changing.
1932 J. G. Neihardt Black Elk Speaks xvii. 199 The seasons form a great circle in their changing.
2012 M. Belto Wax & Paper Workshop 32/2 There is no fading or changing of color over time.
b. The arrival of the moon at a different phase, esp. at that of a new moon; the period of time at which this occurs. Cf. change n. 13.
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the world > the universe > planet > primary planet > moon > phase > [noun] > passage between
changea1393
changinga1398
a1398 J. Trevisa tr. Bartholomaeus Anglicus De Proprietatibus Rerum (BL Add. 27944) (1975) II. xviii. liii. 1204 Þei worcheþ by night in þe fulle of þe moone and cesseþ of work in þe chaungyng of þe moone.
a1413 (c1385) G. Chaucer Troilus & Criseyde (Pierpont Morgan) (1882) iii. l. 549 Þe chaungyng of þe moone Whan lyghtles is þe world a nyght or tweyne.
1486 Bk. St. Albans sig. c.vi Take hony at the choungyng of the moon.
?1574 W. Bourne Regiment for Sea 45 Now you must consider that euery houre of time in the chaunging of the Moone or of the Eclipses you must allow .15. degrees.
1611 Bible (King James) Ecclus. xliii. 8 The moneth is called after her name, encreasing wonderfully in her changing . View more context for this quotation
1774 J. Bertram Observ. Var. Subj. 29 The remainder is the day of the Moon's changing.
1866 Cultivator & Country Gentleman 30 Aug. 147/1 The changing of the moon, takes place all of the time alike, as much one day as another.
1962 C. F. Koch in Antioch Rev. 22 456 There is a faint breeze that my wife insists comes always with the changing of the moon.
2002 J. Cashford Moon iv. 105 (caption) The crescent above the bull's heads is inverted,..pointing to the changing of the Moon in a new revolution.
Phrases
changing of the guard n. (a) (usually with the) the ceremonial replacement of one body of guards by another, esp. at a royal palace, a parliamentary building, etc.; (b) figurative a radical change in personnel, typically resulting in an old or traditional management style or approach being replaced by a newer, more modern one.Sometimes (in informal use) in plural form changing of the guards.In Britain, the changing of the guard (often with capital initials) is most commonly used to refer to the ceremony that takes place in the forecourt of Buckingham Palace.
ΚΠ
1834 J. Roby in G. Hogarth White Rose of York 31 [In the Roman Forum] he..paused a few moments..to observe..the changing of the guard.
1838 Courier 22 Nov. He crossed over to the Horse-guards, being attracted by the crowd which was viewing the changing of the guard.
1871 Sun & Central Press 29 Dec. 10/1 The ‘wayghtes’ were musical watchmen..who piped at stated hours for the changing of the guard.
1923 Republican-Courier (Findlay, Ohio) 29 Sept. 6/6 Gen. Kulikov represents a changing of the guard among the Soviet military. The new military leaders are in their 50s whereas..[they] used to be the oldest in any army.
1979 Globe & Mail (Toronto) (Nexis) 1 Dec. Performing the ceremony of Changing of the Guards [in Victoria, BC] was a skinny teenager,..his face drowned in his black fur busby.
1984 J. Morris Journeys (1992) 130 Resplendent cavalrymen..labor up the cobbled roadway for the changing of the guard at the palace [in Stockholm].
1993 Independent 1 Feb. 2/6 There is a changing of the guard at the BBC today. Liz Forgan..has clearly decided to break with the pompous rhetoric..exercised by its senior executives.
2016 Star (S. Afr.) (Nexis) 10 Sept. 4 You simply have to watch the Changing of the Guard at Buckingham Palace, take a spin on the London Eye,..or ogle the spectacular Crown Jewels.
Compounds
C1. † a. attributive. Designating clothes or a garment which one can change into if required. Obsolete.
ΚΠ
a1382 Bible (Wycliffite, E.V.) (Douce 369(1)) (1850) Isa. iii. 22 In that dai the Lord shal don awei..ryngus, and iemmes..and chaunging clothis [L. mutatoria].
c1384 Bible (Wycliffite, E.V.) (Douce 369(2)) (1850) Zech. iii. 4 Y haue clothid thee with chaungynge clothis [L. mutatoriis].
a1450 Rule St. Benet (Vesp.) (1902) l. 2015 (MED) And changing kirtils sal þai haue, In nyghtes þer oþer forto saue.
b. attributive. Designating a place where one can change one's clothes or a place or surface where one can change a baby's nappy. Cf. changing room n. at Compounds 2.
ΚΠ
1884 Internat. Health Exhib. Official Catal. 130/1 Plan..of Dry or Changing House where miners change their clothes.
1972 J. P. Walsh Goldengrove (1985) 87 The beach is empty, except for two boys swimming, and a dog, and a man sitting alone on a bench by the changing huts.
1992 Holiday Which? Jan. 36/3 Gaily striped changing tents form regimented rows along the beach.
1995 Mother & Baby June 106/1 Changing stations are comfortable, practical and an ideal place for storing everything you need to change your baby close at hand.
2007 H. Alabaster Clever Clogs Children's Guide County Durham 46/3 Drop down changing units in each of the disabled toilets.
2011 Globe & Mail (Canada) (Nexis) 20 Oct. s1 A changing station for babies is tucked into a quiet back corner.
C2. † changing-place n. Obsolete a place where change occurs.
changing bag n. Photography and Cinematography (a) a lightproof bag used for handling film or photographic plates without exposing them to light, typically having two sleeve-like openings that allow access to the interior; (b) a bag equipped with items required for changing a baby's nappy.
ΘΚΠ
the world > physical sensation > cleanness and dirtiness > cleaning > cleaning or cleanliness of the person > [noun] > baby's nappy > equipment, etc., for changing nappies
changing table1917
changing pad1967
changing mat1973
changing bag1980
1861 F. J. Cox Photographic Tourist (ed. 4) i. 10 The plates can be taken in a plate box, and transferred to the dark slide by the aid of a changing bag.
1944 Pop. Photogr. May 58/2 With this precaution, the makeshift changing bag becomes almost as efficient as the regular store variety.
1980 Observer 9 Nov. 43/5 (advt.) Baby's Changing Bag... This smart quilted bag carries everything needed for baby and unzips to form a comfortable p.v.c. lined mat for changing baby's nappy.
1995 Yorkshire Evening Press 20 May 10/8 (advt.) Silver Cross Wayfarer pushchair 3-in-1, with carrycot, PVC raincover, cosytoes, sun canopy, changing bag.
2012 M. Hubris-Cherrier Voice & Vision (ed. 2) viii. 177 A changing bag is simply a large, lightproof bag with a double zipper opening at the base and sleeves on the other end.
changing mat n. a mat which provides a clean, soft surface on which a baby can be placed in order to change its nappy.
ΘΚΠ
the world > physical sensation > cleanness and dirtiness > cleaning > cleaning or cleanliness of the person > [noun] > baby's nappy > equipment, etc., for changing nappies
changing table1917
changing pad1967
changing mat1973
changing bag1980
1973 Queensland Agric. Jrnl. 99 277/2 A chenille type foam-backed bath mat makes a very satisfactory changing mat for baby.
1999 Daily Mail (Nexis) 22 July 52 The baby-changing facilities in each carriage featured a squidgy changing mat.
2011 M. Stoppard Grandparents iv. 86 Always do a diaper change on a firm, flat surface covered with a changing mat.
changing note n. Music an accented passing-note.
ΘΚΠ
society > leisure > the arts > music > musical sound > harmony or sounds in combination > [noun] > movement of parts > by passing note > passing note
passing-note1658
changing note1847
passing tone1874
1847 R. Platt New, Easy, & Correct Syst. Vocal Music v. 85 In the example below, the D, F, and A are passing notes; the B is a changing note.
1876 J. Stainer & W. A. Barrett Dict. Musical Terms 83/1 Changing notes, passing notes or discords which occur on the accented parts of a bar.
1994 M. Kennedy Oxf. Dict. Music (ed. 2) 164/1 Changing Note or Nota Cambiata, idiomatic melodic formula, salient characteristic of which is a leap of a third away from an unessential note.
changing pad n. = changing mat n.
ΘΚΠ
the world > physical sensation > cleanness and dirtiness > cleaning > cleaning or cleanliness of the person > [noun] > baby's nappy > equipment, etc., for changing nappies
changing table1917
changing pad1967
changing mat1973
changing bag1980
1967 J. Lowrie & S. King Marriage Bk. 245 Two cheap things are useful: those plastic changing pads which the baby can't roll off (at least at first) and one of the little plastic prop-up chairs.
1994 Wall Street Jrnl. 17 May b7/3 The study found significantly fewer bacteria on the toy balls, changing pads and chairs in rooms where disposable diapers were used.
2006 Wired July 58/3 Diaper bag... The design and the customer service were so good that we're tempted to order a matching burp cloth and changing pad.
ΚΠ
1870 J. Parker City Temple: Serm. Poultry Chapel I. 207 The grave is not a goal, it is but a changing-place.
changing room n. a room at a sports ground, swimming pool, etc., where one can change one's clothes; (also) a room in a shop where one can try on clothes.
ΘΚΠ
society > inhabiting and dwelling > inhabited place > a building > parts of building > room > room by type of use > [noun] > room for keeping clothes or dressing
wardrobec1440
garderobe?c1450
vestiaryc1450
vestuaryc1490
vestry1574
guarda-roba1602
dressing room1659
robe chamber1665
tire-room1681
robes-roomc1689
apodyteriuma1695
robing room1712
attiring-room1756
toilet1790
toilet chamber1798
toilet room1800
changing room1841
dressing shed1845
change room1886
1841 Cornwall Royal Gaz. 19 Feb. All the scholars will be provided with..a complete suit of clean clothing, to be taken with them to a changing room adjoining the school.
1960 J. Betjeman Summoned by Bells vii. 65 In steam like this the changing-room was bathed.
2015 Sunday Star-Times (Auckland, N.Z.) (Nexis) 22 Nov. 18 I'm in a changing room trying on a beaded 40s dress the colour of celery.
Derivatives
ˈchangingness n.
ΚΠ
1860 Lady's Newspaper 16 June 463/1 I..spurn the Real, and grasp but Changingness.
1910 H. E. Cushman Beginner's Hist. Philos. I. 33 The senses tell us that their objects are permanent, while the reason sees through this deception to the changingness of the world.
2012 C. Scott Lit. Transl. & Rediscovery Reading vii. 161 This changingness is partly expressed in the changing typefaces.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, June 2017; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
† changingn.2
Obsolete. rare.
A chomping or chewing sound; = chanking n.
ΚΠ
1648 G. Markham Cheape & Good Husb. (ed. 7) i. xxii. 100 A certain hollow changing [ed. 1, 1614 chanking] in his mouth.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, June 2017; most recently modified version published online March 2019).
changingadj.
/ˈtʃeɪn(d)ʒɪŋ/, U.S. /ˈtʃeɪndʒɪŋ/ 1. That undergoes change or alteration; varying, inconstant. Also: that changes colour when viewed from a different angle or in a different light (cf. changeant adj.).
ΘΚΠ
the world > time > change > [adjective] > changing or undergoing alteration
changing1340
turningc1450
muantc1460
shifting1479
altering1561
kaleidoscopic1857
kaleidoscopical1858
the world > matter > colour > variegation > iridescence > [adjective]
changeablec1450
cangeant1608
volant1616
changeanta1653
changing1659
pavonine1688
versicoloured1721
perlaceous1777
iridescent1794
pavonated1798
chatoyant1816
nacreous1819
shot1824
versicolorate1826
nacrous1836
versicolorous1847
iridine1851
perlarious1858
nacry1859
nacrine1862
playing1871
fire-opalescent1873
irisated1887
holographic1988
1340 Ayenbite (1866) 104 Alle oþre þinges byeþ chonginde.
c1400 (?c1380) Cleanness (1920) l. 1588 Suche a chaungande chaunce.
c1450 Jacob's Well (1900) 219 Ffyve cytees schal be in þe lond of thirknes spekyng wyth a chaungyng tunge.
1565 B. Googe tr. ‘M. Palingenius’ Zodiake of Life (new ed.) vii. sig. Y.iiij Our chaunging body is disposed diuerslye.
1575 Edinb. Test. III. f. 363v, in Dict. Older Sc. Tongue at Changeand Armosie taffiteis changeand reid & ȝallow.
1583 G. Babington Very Fruitfull Expos. Commaundem. v. 222 So times are changed to and fro, and chaunging times haue chaunged vs too.
1633 P. Fletcher Purple Island i. xxxvii. 10 Every changing scene.
1659 R. Boyle Some Motives & Incentives to Love of God xxv. 163 The changing necks of Doves.
a1717 W. Diaper tr. Oppian Halieuticks (1722) ii. 81 In changing Forms you vainly pride.
1756 J. Grigg Voice of Danger, Voice of God 29 In the finest day, the eye of the seedsman..will often turn upwards, at the thought of changing weather.
1824 L. M. Child Hobomok xix. 169 He soon understood the changing expression of her countenance.
1860 E. Sandars By the Sea 54 Oh ever-changing Sea, With not one old familiar wave.
1953 M. S. Wolle Bonanza Trail viii. 304 The captain was impatient to be off with the changing tide.
2009 Daily Tel. 5 Oct. (Business section) b2/7 The World Bank must become more representative of the changing face of the world economy.
2. That causes change or alteration in something else; modifying.
ΘΚΠ
the world > time > change > [adjective] > changing or causing alteration
changing1586
alterable1594
alterant1626
1586 in W. A. Craigie Maitland Quarto MS (1920) 130 In warld the prince of darknes hes Impyire and gud men thoillis tribulatioun Bot sic tryall lyik ane chainging fyire Then to prepair to thair saluatioun [etc.].
1601 R. Dolman tr. P. de la Primaudaye French Acad. III. 173 A changing or working cause, by force whereof, the matter being wrought and mollified, which is onely in power, is at length actually performed.
1614 A. Gorges tr. Lucan Pharsalia ii. 66 The rowling billowes follow fast, Although that Æols changing hand From his vast caue do them dis-band.
1707 T. Hearne Remarks & Coll. (1886) II. 53 The..Inscription..gave great Offence to the Time changing, sneaking People.
1766 C. Jemmat Misc. 11 His changing hand, with various music fraught, To soothe, to soften, and to melt the mind.
1809 T. Campbell Gertrude of Wyoming 40 The changing hand of time.
1902 Pacific Monthly Aug. 84/2 A few old songs that are..quite immune from the changing touch of Time.
2003 C. B. Divakaruni Conch Bearer (2005) ii.14 If I knew how to work that kind of changing magic, I'd start with Haru's black heart.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, June 2017; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
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n.1?c1225
n.21648
adj.1340