Appendix:French doublets
Standard pairs
editBoth terms are (almost) a direct match etymologically speaking (minimal analogical alteration in the inherited term), and (at least somewhat) common in standard French.
Latinisms
editLatin | Latinism | Borrowing | Inheritance |
---|---|---|---|
aquārium | aquarium | évier | |
campus | campus | champ, camp | |
cursus | cursus | cours | |
lapsus | lapsus | laps | |
processus | processus | procès | |
quattuor | quatuor | quatre | |
sinus | sinus | sein | |
thēsaurus | thésaurus | trésor | |
tībia | tibia | tige | |
versus | versus (through English) | vers |
Borrowed at different periods
editLatin | Borrowed 2 | Borrowed 1 |
---|---|---|
bitūmen | bitume | béton |
cholera | choléra | colère |
communicāre | communiquer | communier |
modulus | module | moule |
organum | organe | orgue |
podager | podagre | pouacre |
scholāris | scolaire | écolier |
speciēs | espèce | épice |
Latin | Borrowed 2 | Borrowed 1 |
---|---|---|
hebdomadārius | hebdomadaire | hebdomadier |
saeculāris | séculaire | séculier |
Semi-learned
editAn inherited term was remodelled after its etymon (a process called réfection), or a borrowing was heavily Frenchified. There are many instances.
Latin | Borrowing | Semi-learned | Inherited |
---|---|---|---|
acūtus | acut (obsolete, jargony) | aigu | Old French ëu[5] |
canālis | canal | chenal | Old French chenel |
capitālis | capital | cheptel[6] | Old French chatel |
indūcere | – | induire[7] | enduire |
Two inherited terms?
editLatin | Inherited 1 | Inherited 2 |
---|---|---|
*domnicella | demoiselle[8] | donzelle |
Pairs with one obsolete, very rare or jargony term
editLatinisms
editLatinisms, also called unadapted borrowings, most of them are scientific terms.
Latin | Unadapted borrowing | Borrowing | Inherited |
---|---|---|---|
angelus | angélus | ange | |
ātrium | atrium (historical) | aître (archaic) | |
bonus | bonus (through English) | bon | |
candēla | candela (through English, jargony) | chandelle | |
chorus | chorus (jargony) | chœur (semi-learned) | |
corpus | corpus | corps | |
credo | crédo | (je) crois | |
cubitus | cubitus | coude | |
focus | focus (through English) | feu | |
forum | forum | for[25] (obsolete), fur[26] (obsolete) | |
frīgidārium | frigidarium (jargony) | frigidaire | |
iēiūnum | jéjunum (jargony) | jeun | |
imperātor | impérator (historical) | empereur | |
locus | locus (jargony) | lieu | |
lupus | lupus (medical) | loup (from Occitan) | |
māior | major | majeur | |
mansiō | mansion (jargony) | maison | |
mediātor | médiator | médiateur | |
medulla | médulla (jargony) | moelle | |
nimbus | nimbus | nimbe | |
nōdus | nodus (medical) | nœud | |
oculus | oculus (jargony) | œil | |
pensum | pensum (literary) | poids | |
podium | podium | puy (regional) | |
radius | radius (jargony) | rai | |
scrīptōrium | scriptorium | écritoire | |
ūvula | uvula (jargony) | uvule | |
vitellus | vitellus (jargony) | veau | |
vīvārium | vivarium | vivier |
Hellenisms
editAncient Greek | Latin | Borrowed | Inherited |
---|---|---|---|
ἐκκλησία (ekklēsía) | ecclēsia | ecclésia (historical) | église |
θήκη (thḗkē) | thēca | thèque (technical), -thèque | taie |
κῦμα (kûma) | cȳma | cyme (technical) | cime |
Obsolete
editMiddle French
editMiddle French had an inherited term, completely replaced by a borrowed one in Modern French. These are very numerous.
Latin | Borrowed Modern French | Inherited Middle French |
---|---|---|
rememorārī | remémorer | remembrer |
repatriāre | rapatrier | repairer[27] |
sapidus | sapide (literary, rare) | sade[28] |
suāvis | suave | souef |
victuālia | victuaille | vitaille[29] |
Middle French had a borrowed term which didn't survive
Latin | Inherited Modern French | Borrowed Middle French |
---|---|---|
rēgālis | royal | regal[30] |
Old French
editOld French had an inherited term, completely replaced by a borrowed one in Modern French. These are very numerous.
Latin | Borrowed Modern French | Inherited Old French |
---|---|---|
applicāre | appliquer | applier, aploier |
baptizāre | baptiser | baptoier |
bestia | bête | bisse |
calumnia | calomnie | chalonge |
*cultivo | cultiver | coutiver |
dignitās | dignité | deintié |
domesticus | domestique | domesche |
factīcius | factice | faitis |
factūra | facture | faiture |
flaccidus | flaccide | flaistre |
fratria | fratrie | frerie |
fugitīvus | fugitif | fuitif |
incarnāre | incarner | encharner |
invitāre | inviter | envier |
minimus | minime | merme |
mirāculum | miracle | mirail |
orīginem | origine | orine |
paenitentia | pénitence | peneance |
regula | règle | reille, reule (semi-learned) |
supplicāre | supplier | souploier |
tenax | tenace | tenais |
Latin | Borrowed Modern French | Inherited Old French |
Borderline cases
editToo much analogy in the inherited term (change of prefix or suffix, conflation with other words, etc.) for it to be a real doublet.
Partial correspondences
edit- One is borrowed, the other inherited
Latin | French borrowed | Latin | French inherited |
---|---|---|---|
adjacens | adjacent | adjacentia (neuter plural) | aisance |
album | album | alba (feminine) | aube |
animal | animal | animālia (neuter plural) | aumaille (obsolete), armaille (obsolete) |
caseārius | casier | caseāria (feminine) | chasière (jargony, obsolete) |
dēbitum | débit | dēbita (neuter plural) | dette |
festūca | fétuque (jargony) | festūcum | fétu |
insignis | insigne | insignia (neuter plural) | enseigne |
minūta (feminine) | minute | minūtus | menu |
persicus | persique | persica (feminine) | pêche (“peach”) |
precārius | précaire | precāria (feminine) | prière |
ventōsa (feminine) | ventouse[39] | ventōsus | venteux |
vocālis | vocal | vocālis (feminine) | voyelle |
volātilis | volatile | volātilia (neuter plural) | volaille |
- Both are inherited
Latin | French inherited | Latin | French inherited |
---|---|---|---|
bracchium | bras | bracchia | brasse |
cornū | cor | cornua[40] | corne |
grānum | grain | grāna | graine |
vascellum | vaisseau | vascella | vaisselle |
Latinisms
editLatin | French borrowed | Latin | French inherited |
---|---|---|---|
foliō (ablative) | folio | folia (neuter plural) | feuille |
viā (ablative) | via | via (nominative) | voie |
Subjective case/Objective case
editLatin accusative | Objective/Accusative | Latin nominative | Subjective/Nominative |
---|---|---|---|
cantōrem | chanteur | cantor | chantre |
compāniōnem | compagnon | compāniō | copain |
Medieval Latin garciōnem | garçon | Medieval Latin garciō | gars |
hominem | homme | homō | on |
minōrem | mineur[41] | minor | moindre |
majōrem | majeur | major | maire |
nonnain (obsolete) | nonne | ||
pastōrem | pasteur[42] | pastor | pâtre |
putain | pute | ||
seniōrem | seigneur, sieur | senior | sire |
tropātōrem | troubadour[43] | tropātor | trouvère |
Old French 1
edit>> OUTSIDE OF SCOPE The inherited terms in Modern French usually come from the objective case, which was longer. For a few words however, the subjective case was kept.
Old French 2
edit>> OUTSIDE OF SCOPE Useless, but funny.
objective case | subjective case |
---|---|
graignor | graindre |
From spelling variants to doublets
editFormed in French.
1 | 2 |
---|---|
bénit | béni |
compter | conter |
différent | différend |
exhausser | exaucer |
fonds | fond |
galle | gale |
penser | panser |
repaire | repère |
veau | vau (jargony) |
From variants to doublets
editLatin | Variant 1 | Variant 2 |
---|---|---|
*assopīre | assoupir | assouvir |
cathedra | chaire | chaise |
collum | col | cou |
credentia | créance | croyance |
*dīvīsāre[45] | diviser | deviser |
plicāre | ployer | plier |
rotulus[46] | rôle | roule |
tabula | taule | tôle |
torta | tourte | tarte |
Variant 1 | Variant 2 |
---|---|
appel | appeau |
mac | mec |
oreillon | orillon |
French participles
editSlightly outside of scope.
Latin | Inherited | Analogical |
---|---|---|
exclūsa | écluse | exclue |
*exmovita | émeute | émue |
*exlecta | élite | élue |
potentem | pouvant | puissant |
sapientem | sachant | savant |
servientem | sergent | servant |
*torsus[47] | tors | tordu |
valentem | valant | vaillant |
volentem | voulant | veuillant |
Latin | Borrowed | French |
---|---|---|
amans | amant | aimant (from aimer) |
perversus | pervers | perverti |
Borrowings from Dutch
editLatin | Borrowed from Dutch | French |
---|---|---|
coquus | coq | queux |
rēgula | rigole | règle |
Dialectal loans
editFor some of these, a process that was originally dialectal became temporarily productive in central French due to limited analogy—this was the case with devoicing of the final palatals, as Mazzola notes.
Latin | Inherited Old French | Dialect loan | Stage | Source |
---|---|---|---|---|
granica | grange | granche | Early Old French | A northern dialect |
vindicāre | venger | revancher | Early Old French | A northern dialect |
cathedra | chaire | chaise | Middle French | A western dialect |
franciscus | François | français | Middle French | a lower class Paris dialect |
benedictus | benoît | benêt | Middle French | a Norman dialect or a lower class Paris dialect |
Borrowings from English
editA fair amount of them are reborrowings (i.e. the English term was borrowed from French or Old French).
Etymon | From English | French |
---|---|---|
Latin *botellīnus | pudding | boudin |
budget | bougette (historical) | |
Latin *buxita | box | boîte |
Latin calumnia | challenge | calomnie |
Latin camera | caméra | chambre |
Latin contrāta | country | contrée |
– | ticket | étiquette |
Latin *exquadra | square | équerre |
Latin *focālia | fuel, fioul | fouaille |
– | gay | gai |
Latin humor | humour | humeur |
– | interview | entrevue |
Latin palātium | palace | palais |
– | penalty | pénalité |
Latin rēgula | rail | règle |
Italian schizzo | sketch | esquisse |
– | standard | étendard |
Italian studio | studio | étude |
Latin tostus | toast | tôt |
Borrowings from Italian
editSome of them are unadapted borrowings. The musical terms especially could be seen as instances of code-switching rather than plain French terms; some of them are reborrowings from French anyway.
Latin | Borrowed from Italian | Borrowed from Latin | Inherited from Latin |
---|---|---|---|
alacer | allegro | allègre | |
balneum | bagne | bain | |
caballārius | cavalier | chevalier | |
*cadentia | cadence | chance | |
calcāre | calquer | côcher (obsolete, rare) | |
cauda | coda | queue | |
clāra | Clara | Claire | |
consuētūdinem | costume | consuétude | coutume |
crypta | grotte | crypte | |
dēsignāre | dessiner | désigner | |
dux | doge | duc | |
– | fiasco | flasque | |
*fortiātus | forçat | forcé | |
humilitas | omerta[48] | humilité | |
intricāre | intriguer | intriquer (rare) | |
lacūna | lagune | lacune | |
lentus | lento | lent | |
magister | maestro | maître | |
maritimus | Maremme | maritime | |
numerus | numéro | nombre | |
opera | opéra | œuvre | |
oratorius | oratorio | oratoire | |
palatīnus | paladin | palatin | |
phlegma | flemme | phlegme | |
plānus | piano | plain | |
praestus | presto | prêt | |
scāla | escale | échelle | |
solus | solo | seul | |
*superānus | soprano | souverain | |
– | trombe | trompe | |
vīlla | villa | ville | |
vindicta | vendetta | vindicte |
Borrowings from Occitan or Provençal
editLatin | Borrowed from Occitan | Borrowed from Latin | Inherited from Latin |
---|---|---|---|
aquila | aigle | aille (dialectal) | |
-āta(m) | -ade | -ée | |
bicornis | bigorne | bicorne | |
cacāre | caguer (regional) | chier | |
caput | cap | chef | |
cappa | cape | chape | |
capra | cabre (regional) | chèvre | |
capsa | caisse | capse | châsse |
cardō[49] | cardon | chardon | |
carricāre | carguer[50] (jargony) | charger | |
carnārium | carnier | charnier | |
castanea | castagne | châtaigne | |
castellum | castel (regional) | château | |
dactylus[51] | datte | dactyle | |
fāta | fade (regional) | fée | |
forma | fourme[52] (jargony) | forme | |
gradus | grau (regional) | grade | |
*Hispāniolus | espagnol | épagneul | |
iūrātus | jurat (regional) | juré | |
lupus | loup | leu (obsolete) | |
magistrālis | mistral | magistral | |
opācus | ubac | opaque | |
pastināca | pastenague (regional) | panais | |
pilōsus | pelouse | pileux | |
presbyter[53] | praire | presbytre (jargony) | prêtre |
provincia | Provence | province | |
rotāre | rôder | rouer | |
spatha | espade | spathe | épée |
stella | Estelle | étoile | |
*tropātōr(em) | troubadour | trouvère, trouveur | |
vicārius | viguier (jargony) | vicaire | voyer |
Borrowings from Portuguese
editLatin | Portuguese borrowing | Borrowed from Latin | Inherited from Latin |
---|---|---|---|
caldāria | caldeira | –[54] | chaudière |
colubra[55] | cobra | – | couleuvre |
factīcius | fétiche | factice | –[56] |
Borrowings from Spanish
editLatin | Borrowed from Spanish | Borrowed from Latin | Inherited from Latin |
---|---|---|---|
adjutantem | adjudant | aidant | |
armāta | armada | armée | |
domina | duègne | dame | |
fābulārī | hâbler (archaic) | fabuler (rare) | |
infans | infant (historical) | enfant | |
iūncta | junte | jointe | |
māsculus | macho | mâle | |
niger | nègre | noir | |
pannus | pagne | pan | |
patella | paella | patelle | poêle |
pedō | péon | pion | |
pigmentum | piment | pigment | |
rēgālis | réal | royal | |
rīvus | rio | ru (archaic, literary) | |
sexta | sieste | sexte, sixte |
More than two
editTriplets
editLatin | 1 | 2 | 3 |
---|---|---|---|
cancer | cancer | cancre | chancre |
capitellum | caudillo | cadeau | chapiteau |
castellānus | castillan | castellan | châtelain |
catēna | catène (jargony) | cadène | chaîne |
computāre | computer (archaic, rare) | compter | conter |
cucurbita | cucurbite (jargony) | courge | gourde |
mediāna | médiane | misaine | moyenne |
parabola | parabole | palabre | parole |
patella | patelle (jargony) | paella | poêle |
pedester | pédestre | piètre | pitre |
pensāre | penser | panser | peser[57] |
polypūs | polype | poulpe | pieuvre |
senior | senior (from English) | señor | sire |
quaternī | quaterne (jargony) | caserne | cahier |
quiētus | quiet (rare) | quitte[58] | coi |
vicārius | vicaire | viguier (jargony) | voyer (jargony) |
vīpera | vipère | guivre (rare) | vouivre (rare) |
Latin | 1 | 2 | 3 |
Ancient Greek | French 1 | French 2 | French 3 |
---|---|---|---|
ἄγκυρα (ánkura)[59] | Ankara | Angora | ancre |
κιθάρα (kithára)[60] | cithare | guitare | cistre |
Quadruplets
editLatin | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 |
---|---|---|---|---|
capsa[61] | capse | casse | caisse | châsse |
cathedra | cathèdre | cadière | chaire | chaise |
*exquadra | escadre | escouade | square | équerre |
Quintuplets
editLatin | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
benedīctus | Bénédicte[62] | benoît, Benoît | benêt | bénit | béni |
magister | magister (borrowing, archaic) | magistre (jargony, through Greek) | maestro (through Italian) | master (through English) | maître |
Ancient Greek | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
φάλαγξ (phálanx)[63] | phalange (jargony) | palanque (jargony) | palanche (regional) | palan (jargony) | planche |
False doublets
editOne or both of the terms doesn't directly come from the Latin term, but was formed (*) in French or in the language from which it was borrowed.
Derived terms of doublets built identically
edit1 | 2 | |
---|---|---|
châsse–caisse | enchâsser | encaisser |
Two different intermediaries
editUltimate source | Intermediary one | Result | Intermediary two | Result |
---|---|---|---|---|
*xorvatъ | Croata | Croate | Hr̀vāt | cravate |
See also
editFootnotes
edit- ^ Compare Old French arteil.
- ^ From earlier roide, originally the feminine form of Old French roit.
- ^ Also similāre.
- ^ A metathetic form of Old French temprer.
- ^ Still found in the toponym Montheu.
- ^ Altered after chef.
- ^ Altered after the inherited form enduire.
- ^ See also damoiselle.
- ^ From the nominative case.
- ^ Still found in the compounds bonheur and malheur.
- ^ From Ancient Greek καθέδρα (kathédra).
- ^ The prefixed word décoction is much more common.
- ^ Still found in outrecuidance.
- ^ From Ancient Greek φρατρία (phratría).
- ^ Still found as the nominalised past participle empreinte.
- ^ From Ancient Greek λαϊκός (laïkós).
- ^ From Ancient Greek μοναστήριον (monastḗrion).
- ^ Still found in the derived terms ouvrable, ouvrage and ouvrier. See also œuvrer, an analogical form built on œuvre.
- ^ From Vulgar Latin *racīmus.
- ^ Chiefly found in prepositional phrases such as à ras bord.
- ^ Exclusively found in rez-de-chaussée.
- ^ See also the nominalised feminine rotonde, a borrowing from Italian.
- ^ From Ancient Greek σπάθη (spáthē).
- ^ From Ancient Greek συμφωνία (sumphōnía).
- ^ Found almost exclusively in the phrase for intérieur in Modern French.
- ^ Found exclusively in the phrase au fur et à mesure in Modern French.
- ^ Still found in the deverbal repaire.
- ^ Still found in maussade.
- ^ Still found in ravitailler.
- ^ Only found in the phrase eau régale in Modern French.
- ^ Compare Old French cueudre.
- ^ Compare Old French deel.
- ^ Compare Old French esrachier.
- ^ Compare Old French feel.
- ^ Compare Old French entir.
- ^ Compare Old French netun.
- ^ Compare Old French papir.
- ^ Compare Old French poitral.
- ^ From ventōsa [cucurbita].
- ^ Vulgar Latin *corna.
- ^ Borrowing.
- ^ Semi-learned form.
- ^ Borrowed from Old Occitan trobador, while trouvère is a proper French word. The Old French form of the oblique case is troveor, whence perhaps French trouveur (unless it was coined in French).
- ^ Classical Latin pictor.
- ^ Also dissimilated Vulgar Latin devisāre.
- ^ Medieval Latin rollus.
- ^ Unattested? Supine torsum found in Priscian; usual tortus.
- ^ From a Southern Italian variant of umiltà.
- ^ Medieval; compare Classical carduus.
- ^ Undoubtedly comes from the Latin word, but exact path unknown. See also cargaison.
- ^ From Ancient Greek δάκτυλος (dáktulos).
- ^ See also fromage.
- ^ From Ancient Greek πρεσβύτερος (presbúteros).
- ^ However, see caldarium.
- ^ Vulgar Latin *colobra.
- ^ Old French faitis.
- ^ See also Middle French poiser.
- ^ From Medieval Latin quitus
- ^ Latin ancora.
- ^ Latin cithara.
- ^ See also the diminutive capsula, borrowed as capsule.
- ^ Borrowing from the feminine benedīcta
- ^ There are several Latin forms: phalanx, phalanga, palanga, palanca (hypercorrect).
- ^ Borrowing with partial Frenchification.
Bibliography
edit- Brachet A., Dictionnaire des doublets: ou Doubles formes de la langue française, 1868 (part I)
- Brachet A., Dictionnaire des doublets: ou Doubles formes de la langue française, 1868 (part II)
- Python F., La duplicité étymologique du lexique. Étude des doublets étymologiques relevant du clivage héréditaire / savant en langue française. (unpublished thesis).
- Studien zur romanischen Wortschöpfung, 1876
- Imre Szabics, Doublets et mots savants en français
- From Latin to Modern French
- A list of doublets