Saturday
(ˈsætədeɪ, -dɪ)
Forms: α. 1 Sæternes-, Seternes dæᵹ, 3 Sæternes dæᵹ, 5 Saturnesday, 7 Sc. Saturnsday; 1 Sæterndæᵹ, 2 Sætern-daiᵹ, 5 Saturneday, 7–8 Sc. Saturnday; β. 1 Sæteres dæᵹ, 3 Sateresdai, 3–4 Settresday, 4 Seters-dai, 5 Setrys-day, 7 Saters-day; γ. 1 Sæter-dæᵹ, 2 Sæter-daiᵹ, Saterdei, 3 Sætterdæi, Orm. Saterrdaᵹᵹ, 4 Satirdai, Saturdaie, Seterdai, Setre-, Setret-, Settir-, Set(t)urday, Zeterday, -dey, 4–5 Seter-, Setirday, 4–6 Saterdaye, Satir-, Setterday, 4–7 Saterday, 5 Scaturday, Setryday, Set(t)yrday, 5–6 Satyrday, 5–7 Satterday, 6 Satterdaie, Sat(t)orday, Saturdaye, 6–7 Saterdaie, 9 dial. Settherday, 3– Saturday.
[OE. Sætern(es)dæᵹ, corresp. to OFris. saterdî, saterdei, MDu. saterdach (Du. zaterdag, earlier zaturdag), MLG. sater(s)dach (LG. saterdag), whence northern HG. dial. satertag; a half-translated adoption of L. Sāturnī diēs day of (the planet) Saturn; cf. Irish, Gael. dia Sathuirn, Welsh dydd Sadwrn.]
1. The seventh day of the week.
The advb. use of the names of the days of the week (Saturday = ‘on Saturday’) is now chiefly U.S., exc. in collocations like ‘next Saturday’, ‘last Saturday’. Formerly the Saturday was often used advb. but is now rare or obs. exc. with some defining phrase.
| a 900 tr. Bæda's Hist. ii. iii. (Schipper) 125 æᵹhwilce sæternes dæᵹe. 971 Blickl. Hom. 71 ærest on þæm Sæteres dæᵹe he awehte Ladzarum of deaþe. c 1000 Ags. Gosp. Luke xxiii. 54 Sæter-dæᵹ on-lyhte. Ibid. 56 On sætern-dæᵹ. c 1175 Lamb. Hom. 45 Ic ham ȝeuereste..from non on saterdei a þa cume monedeis lihting. c 1200 Ormin 4350 Forr Saterr⁓daȝȝ wass haliȝ daȝȝ O þatt Judisskenn wise. c 1290 S. Eng. Leg. I. 66/451 On a satur-day at niȝht. c 1300 St. Brandan 543 For ich am her ech Soneday and fram Sater⁓dayes Eve. a 1300 Cursor M. 17673 Als i stod saiand mi bede, þe seterdai. 1340 Ayenb. 213 Yef god het zuo straytlic[h]e loki þane zeterday ine þe yealde laȝe þet he made ane man to stene..uor þet he hedde y-gadered a lite wode þane zeterdey. 1362 Langl. P. Pl. A. v. 14 On a Seterday at euen. c 1375 Sc. Leg. Saints x. (Mathou) 336 Þan yrtacus..þe next setret-day..a congregacion has gert ma. 1418 E.E. Wills (1882) 28 On Setrysday in þe vygyle of þe Holy Trynyte. 1421 Coventry Leet-bk. 30 Euery Saturneday in the yer. c 1447 in Jarrow & Wearmouth (Surtees) 242 Apon Saturnesday next be for Palmsonday. c 1475 Partenay 2724 So it cam and fill in a scaturday, That Raymounde loste the fair melusine. c 1500 Melusine 15 That he wil promytte to the that neuer on the Satirday he shall see the. c 1511 1st Eng. Bk. Amer. Introd. (Arb.) 34/2 Noman ther ouer can passe, excepte ye saterdaye. 1556 Chron. Gr. Friars (Camden) 36 The satterday after, that was Wytson evyn, [she] came from the tower thorow London. 1581 J. Hamilton Cath. Treat. V viij, God commandit yat ve suld Keip halie ye Sabaoth day, quhilk is Setterday. c 1610–15 Lives Women Saints 93 From Thursday vntill Satersday. 1637–50 Row Hist. Kirk (Wodrow Soc.) 515 On Saturnsday, Aprile 27, they disbanded their men. 1671 [R. MacWard] True Nonconf. 119 That the Churches meeting recorded to have been on the first day of the week, sayeth not that they antiquated the Saturnday. 1703 Extracts Burgh Rec. Stirling (1889) 99 Against Saturnday next. 1775 T. Percival Ess. (1777) III. 194 Saturday, the mint continued to grow and to ascend, looking vigorous and fresh. 1793 Burke Obs. Cond. Minority Wks. VII. 236 Although the House does not usually sit on Saturday. 1845 T. W. Coit Puritanism 495 The Puritan way of eating fish is, to eat it Saturday instead of Friday. 1870 M. D. Conway Earthw. Pilgr. xxviii. 344 On Saturday the English people are among the most sensible people in the world. 1885 Cath. Dict. (ed. 3) 561/1 The office of the Blessed Virgin is said on all Saturdays. |
2. With specific epithet.
Black Saturday Sc., (
a) the 10th Sept. 1547, the date of the Battle of Pinkie; (
b) the 4th Aug. 1621, the date of the ratification of the articles of Perth.
Egg Saturday: see
egg n. 7.
Holy Saturday, the Saturday of Holy Week; Easter eve.
Hospital Saturday: see
hospital n. 6.
| 1657 Mure Ho. Rowallane Wks. (S.T.S.) II. 255 He died in battell at the Black Satterday in the year of our Lord 1547. 1717 De Foe Mem. Ch. Scot. ii. 45 The Day got the Name of black Saturday, upon this Account, as well as on the Occasion of the black Work they had been about. |
| 1398 Trevisa Barth. De P.R. ix. xxxi. (1495) 368 Also to Ester perteynyth the euyn therof that for passynge holynesse is callyd Sabbatum Sanctum the holy Saterday. 1730 tr. Fleury's Eccl. Hist. IV. Index, Saturday, holy, even Children fasted on that Day. 1885 Cath. Dict. (ed. 3) 405/2 The Mass celebrated at midnight belonged rather to the morning of Easter Sunday than to Holy Saturday. |
3. a. attrib. and
Comb., as
Saturday-afternooner,
Saturday concert,
Saturday kirtle,
Saturday morning,
Saturday night,
Saturday office,
Saturday sabbath,
† Saturday wit;
Saturday penny, a penny or small sum of money given to a child on Saturday as pocket-money;
† Saturday-sabbatharian = Sabbatarian n. 3.
For
Saturday('s slop or
slap Sc. (in some Dicts.
erron. stop), see
slap n.2 1 b.
| 1906 *Saturday-afternooner [see early-closer s.v. early a. 7]. |
| 1889 Hueffer Half Cent. Mus. Eng. 14 The Crystal Palace *Saturday Concerts. |
| 1557 Will of T. Howgill (Somerset Ho.), My *saturday kyrtyll. |
| 1641 Best Farm. Bks. (Surtees) 77 On *Satterday-morninge the 11th of December. |
| 1785 Burns (title) The Cotter's *Saturday Night. 1859 Sir J. Paget in Mem. & Lett. (1901) 224 In bringing-up the book ‘to Saturday night’. |
| 1686 [Hickes] Spec. B. Virginis 13 One of the Lessons for the *Saturday-Office of the B. Virgin. |
| 1972 Homes & Gardens Apr. 60, I am old enough to remember the small child's pocket money called the ‘*Saturday penny’. 1979 Church Times 27 Apr. (Mayflower Suppl.) p. iii/2 When I was in trouble with my Mum and Dad and they wouldn't give me my ‘Saturday penny’..I had at least twelve other homes where there were relations where I could go and ‘con’ them for a penny. |
| 1645 E. Pagitt Heresiogr. (1661) 192 Mr. Hebden a prisoner in the New-prison, that lay there for holding *Saturday-Sabbath. |
| 1705 Hickeringill Priest-cr. iv. (1721) 204 Without an express Command (as ye have against the *Saturday-Sabbatharians) in the New Testament. |
| 1593 G. Harvey Pierces Super. 145 Phy, long Megg of Westminster would haue bene ashamed to disgrace her Sonday bonet with her *Satterday witt. |
b. Saturday-to-Monday: a period beginning on Saturday and ending on Monday; often
attrib. with reference to railway and other excursion tickets.
| 1886 C. E. Pascoe London of To-day xviii. (ed. 3) 182 In one of the delightful Saturday to Monday trips on the Thames. 1892 Mrs. H. Ward David Grieve iv. ii, A..warm invitation..to spend an October Saturday-to-Monday at Benet's Park had been accepted. |