It happens that, wishing to flash knowledge and intelligence in front of the interlocutor, we use an expression whose contents we do not fully understand.
How often have you come across the use of words in an unusual meaning for them? How often, instead of the word "immigrant" (a person who has moved into a foreign country), they said "emigrant" (a person leaving his homeland)? Or maybe you use words in speech, the meaning of which has long changed? Let's find out the meaning of the term “engage” and the phrases “engaged man”. These words are quite common on radio and television, as well as in print media.
The origin of the word "engage"
The general meaning of the word is to invite (invite) someone, it comes from the German "engagieren" and the French "engager", which translates as "oblige, bind with a promise." That is, engaging, you bind a person with an obligation to visit you.
“Engaged” - what is your attitude to dancing?
What? - said the drunken gentleman, blinking to the dragoon captain, who encouraged him with signs, “do you not like it? .. I still have the honor to engage you in pour mazure ... [to the mazurka ... (French)] You may think I'm drunk ? It's nothing! .. Much freer, I can assure you ...
M.Yu. Lermontov "Hero of our time"
Felt the spirit of the 19th century? Have you heard the sounds of a waltz and mazurka? Introduced the ladies in crinolines and their baleen gentlemen? So what does it mean to “engage” in the great works of Russian classics?
Undoubtedly, balls were the main entertainment of the 18th and 19th centuries. According to the etiquette of that time, the gentleman could invite the lady to one or several dances in advance and be sure that the girl would pay him attention this evening. Recalling the etymology of the word, it can be said that the engaged person is a must, who has made a promise. In the case of dancing, the woman gave the man a guarantee that he would dance with him.
What does Sartre have to do with it?
In the 20th century, the French philosopher Jean-Paul Sartre introduced a new meaning to the word "engage." He talked about the fact that a biased person is a person with a consciously chosen social position. In his opinion, an individual through making moral and practical choices creates himself through people. For a long time the word was used in this sense.
Modern meaning
Time goes by, balls have sunk into oblivion along with duels and quadrille, as well as the meanings of some words. Currently, this word has a more prosaic meaning.
According to the definition of modern explanatory dictionaries, “engaged” is a person who acts in a certain way because he was involved in another business by another person, bribed by services, benefits, and biased.
To make it clearer, let us use an example: the St. Petersburg election committee needs an unbiased observer.
Now that we’ve figured out what it means to “engage” and find out that “engaged” is a word that has no relation to balls at the moment, there should not be any difficulties in using them!