Charging

How to spell charging

8 letters · 2 syllables

How to pronounce charging

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does charging mean?

1. verbSupplying a battery or device with electrical energy.
2. verbDemanding a sum of money as a price or fee for something.
3. verbRushing forward in a fast, forceful attack or movement.

Charging in a sentence

• The phone is charging on the kitchen counter.

• The garage is charging far too much for a simple repair.

• The bull came charging across the field toward the fence.

• The electric car finished charging overnight in the garage.

• The hotel began charging guests a fee for late checkout.

• The players were charging down the pitch in the final minutes.

Where does charging come from?

Language of origin: French

This is the present participle of the verb 'charge', which came into English in the 1200s from the Old French chargier, meaning 'to load' or 'to put a burden on'. That French verb descended from the Late Latin carricare, 'to load a wagon', itself built on the Latin carrus, a 'wheeled vehicle' or 'cart'. From the literal idea of loading a cart, the meaning branched out remarkably: loading a weapon, loading someone with a duty or accusation, loading a bill onto an account, and eventually loading a battery with electricity. The same carrus root sits behind the everyday words 'car', 'cargo', and 'carry', which is a useful reminder that to charge something was originally just to load it up. The -ing ending is a native English suffix, so the spelling simply keeps the soft 'g' of charge before it.

How the word is built

• charge (to load, from Old French chargier)
• -ing (present participle / gerund suffix)