Appendix:French doublets
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See also: Category:French doublets
Standard pairs
[edit]Both terms are (almost) a direct match etymologically speaking (minimal analogical alteration in the inherited term), and (at least somewhat) common in standard French.
Latinisms
[edit]| Latin | 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
[edit]| Latin | 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
[edit]An 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?
[edit]| Latin | Inherited 1 | Inherited 2 |
|---|---|---|
| *domnicella | demoiselle[8] | donzelle |
Pairs with one obsolete, very rare or jargony term
[edit]Latinisms
[edit]Latinisms, 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
[edit]| Ancient Greek | Latin | Borrowed | Inherited |
|---|---|---|---|
| ἐκκλησία (ekklēsía) | ecclēsia | ecclésia (historical) | église |
| θήκη (thḗkē) | thēca | thèque (technical), -thèque | taie |
| κῦμα (kûma) | cȳma | cyme (technical) | cime |
Obsolete
[edit]Middle French
[edit]Middle 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
[edit]Old 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
[edit]Too 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
[edit]| Latin | French borrowed | Latin | French inherited |
|---|---|---|---|
| foliō (ablative) | folio | folia (neuter plural) | feuille |
| viā (ablative) | via | via (nominative) | voie |
Subjective case/Objective case
[edit]| Latin 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
[edit]Formed 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
[edit]| Latin | 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
[edit]Slightly 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
[edit]| Latin | Borrowed from Dutch | French |
|---|---|---|
| coquus | coq | queux |
| rēgula | rigole | règle |
Dialectal loans
[edit]For 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
[edit]See also: CAT:French twice-borrowed terms
A 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
[edit]Some 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
[edit]| Latin | 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
[edit]| Latin | Portuguese borrowing | Borrowed from Latin | Inherited from Latin |
|---|---|---|---|
| caldāria | caldeira | –[54] | chaudière |
| colubra[55] | cobra | – | couleuvre |
| factīcius | fétiche | factice | –[56] |
Borrowings from Spanish
[edit]| Latin | 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
[edit]Triplets
[edit]| Latin | 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
[edit]| Latin | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| capsa[61] | capse | casse | caisse | châsse |
| cathedra | cathèdre | cadière | chaire | chaise |
| *exquadra | escadre | escouade | square | équerre |
Quintuplets
[edit]| Latin | 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
[edit]One 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
[edit]| 1 | 2 | |
|---|---|---|
| châsse–caisse | enchâsser | encaisser |
Two different intermediaries
[edit]| Ultimate source | Intermediary one | Result | Intermediary two | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| *xorvatъ | Croata | Croate | Hr̀vāt | cravate |
See also
[edit]Footnotes
[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