▪ I. award, v.1
(əˈwɔːd)
[a. AF. awarde-r, ONF. ewarder, eswarder, central F. esguarder, to observe, look at, consider, examine, decide, ordain, fix = OSp. esguardar, It. sguardare:—Romanic *exwardāre, -guardāre, f. ex out, thoroughly + wardāre, guardāre, ad. OLG. *ward-ên (OS. wardôn, OE. wardian, cogn. w. OHG. wartên, mod.G. warten) to watch. Cf. ward, guard.]
I. To award a thing.
† 1. To examine a matter and adjudicate upon its merits; to decide, determine, after consideration or deliberation. Obs. a. trans.
| 1393 Gower Conf. III. 354 So as my court it hath awarded, Thou shalt be duely rewarded. 1480 Caxton Chron. Eng. cxxvii. 106, I wylle that ye award and doo ryght. 1547 J. Heywood Wit & Folly Introd. (1846) 30, I judge and awarde Both these pleasures of yours as one in regarde. 1686 Dryden Hind & P. ii. 381 Shall then the Testament award the right? 1725 Pope Odyss. viii. 222 Ev'n he who sightless wants his visual ray, May by his touch alone award the day. |
† b. with inf. phr. or subord. clause.
| c 1386 Chaucer Doctor's T. 202 This clerk schal have his thral; thus I awarde. 1480 Caxton Chron. Eng. cxxvii. 106, I award..that hymself and his sone wend byfore the kyng. 1725 Pope Odyss. viii. 557 The unwise award to lodge it in the towers. |
2. To determine upon and appoint by judicial sentence.
| 1533 More Debell. Salem Wks. 983/2 The iudges a warde write to enquire of what fame and behauiour the man is. 1704 Lond. Gaz. No. 4049/4 A Commission of Bankrupt being awarded against William Mackdugale. a 1709 Sir R. Atkyns Parl. & Pol. Tracts (1734) 93 An Officer..executing Process which is erroneously awarded. 1876 Green Short Hist. viii. §5 (1882) 502 Fines of four and five thousand pounds were awarded for brawls. 1884 Law Times Rep. 12 Apr. 207/1 An umpire..awarded that the local board should pay..200l. |
3. To grant or assign (to a person) by judicial or deliberate decision; to adjudge.
| 1523 Act 14 & 15 Hen. VIII, ii, To award to the party complainant such amendes. 1596 Shakes. Merch. V. iv. i. 300 A pound of that same marchants flesh is thine, The Court awards it, and the law doth give it. 1722 De Foe Moll Fl. (1840) 269 It was not in his power to award me any reparation. 1851 Hussey Papal Power ii. 66 He awarded to the Bishop of Vienne..four neighbouring cities. 1877 Mrs. Oliphant Mak. Flor. iii. 65 It was his..to award everlasting praise to his friends. |
† b. loosely. To furnish, give. Obs. rare.
| 1583 Stanyhurst Aeneis i. (Arb.) 22 Furye weapon awardeth [furor arma ministrat]. Ibid. viii. (1836) 142 Theyre labor hot they folow; toe the flame fits gyreful awarding. |
† II. To award a person. Obs.
† 4. To sentence, appoint (to do something). Obs.
| 1538 Starkey England 190 The party condemnyd..schold ever be awardyd to pay costys. 1650 Fuller Pisgah 384 A tierce of Levites were awarded to waite. |
† 5. To sentence, consign (to custody, etc.).
| 1548 Udall, etc. Erasm. Par. Heb. vi. 2 (R.) That last judgment, which shall awarde some to eternall felicitie, and other some to euerlastyng paynes. 1602 W. Fulbecke 1st Pt. Parall. 83 Yet euerie of them shall be awarded to prison. 1648 Prynne Plea for Lords 56 The..Lords..awarded him to the custody of the Marshall. |
▪ II. † aˈward, v.2 Obs.
[f. a- prefix 11 + ward v.]
1. trans. To guard.
| c 1534 Pol. Verg. Eng. Hist. (1846) 268 The passages weare straghtlie awarded bie there enemies. |
2. To ward off (blows, etc.).
| 1579 Poore Knights Palace G iij, Then Clodius, to award this blow, and to drive back this dome, etc. 1670 Evelyn Mem. (1857) III. 222 Dexterously, yet candidly, to award some unlucky points that are not seldom made at us. 1744 Mitchell in Phil. Trans. XLIII. 108 To award off this Violence of the Sun's Beams. 1783 Ainsworth Lat. Dict. (ed. Morell), To award, or ward off, a blow, Ictum avertĕre. |
▪ III. award, n.
(əˈwɔːd)
Forms: 3 ougard, awgarde, 5–7 awarde, 5–6 adward, 4– award.
[a. AF. award, -airt, agard = OF. ewart, eswart, esguart, ‘look, aspect, attention, consideration, judicial decision, arbitrament,’ n. of action f. eswarder, esguarder: see award v.1 The EE. forms ougard, awgarde, confuse the two F. forms in g and w; for the spelling adv- see ad- prefix 2.]
1. A decision after examination, a judicial sentence, esp. that of an arbitrator or umpire; the document embodying it.
| a 1300 Cursor M. 7318 Þai seke þam-self o a gret ougard [Fairf. a foule awgarde], Þai ask now oþer king þan me. c 1386 Chaucer Pars. T. ¶409 To stonde gladly to the award of hise souereynes. c 1425 Wyntoun Cron. viii. iv. 152 To gyve A-ward For ane of þa twa þan askand Ðe successyown of Scotland. 1473 Sir J. Paston in Lett. 732 III. 102 Sette attone by the adward off the Kyng. 1577 Holinshed Chron. I. 3/1 To interdict so manie..as disobeied their award. 1665 Glanvill Sceps. Sci. x. 52 The condemning award of that unintelligent Tribunal. 1878 Jevons Prim. Pol. Econ. 78 The workmen have in several instances, refused to abide by the award of the umpire. |
2. a. That which is awarded or assigned, as payment, penalty, etc., by the terms of the judge's sentence or arbitrator's decision.
| 1596 Spenser F.Q. iv. x. 17 Faint-heart-fooles, whom shew of perill hard Could terrifie from fortunes faire adward. 1697 Bp. Patrick Comm. Ex. xiv. 17 The Annoyances on their Bodies by Frogs, and Lice..were the just awards..of God's punitive Justice. 1863 Kemble Resid. Georgia 134 The fatal infliction of the usual award of stripes. 1882 Pall Mall G. 13 May 7/2 The balance of the Geneva Award. |
b. Something conferred as a reward for merit; a prize, reward, honour.
| 1854 Poultry Chron. I. 622/2 Game (cock and two hens), {pstlg}1, three entries. No award for want of merit. 1930 Jrnl. Educ. Sept. 720 Scholarship awards... The following awards have been made to candidates who have been approved for admission to a college. 1941 [see academy 7]. 1948 Ann. Reg. 1947 471 For the third time since the Nobel Prizes were instituted the awards for both Physics and Chemistry have been given to British men of science. |
† 3. Keeping, care, custody, wardship. (Cf. award v.2 and ward n.) Obs.
| c 1450 Lonelich Grail xix. 202 Nasciens in presown kepten thei there That him and his londis bothe, they hadde In here award. Ibid. xxiii. 150 Loke thow..Of these ȝiftes that thou take good award. 1570 Marr. Wit & Sc. i. in Hazl. Dodsl. II. 326 To whose award all creatures are assigned. |
4. Special Comb. award-winning a., of a film, design, etc.: that has won an award or awards.
| 1962 Times 30 May 5/2 His experience in documentary, being responsible for..the *award-winning study of life in British day-schools, I Want to Go to School. 1980 Jrnl. R. Soc. Arts Apr. 302/2 One is warmed by the excellence of the 27 award-winning..schemes recognized by the Civic Trust. |