œuvre

Pronunciation

• IPA: /œvʁ/^[1]

Forms

œuvre f (plural œuvres)^[1] Old French ovre (about 1120), uevre (1145), euvre (1160–74), oevre (13th century); œuvre from 1250.^[2][3][4] The spelling oeuvre is nonstandard.^[1]

Etymology

It is inherited from Old French uevre, inherited from Latin opera (“work, activity, effort”), the plural of opus (“work, product of work”) used as a feminine singular since Plautus.^{[5][2][6][4][7][1]} Rey relates the Latin noun to Sanskrit अपस् (ápas, “work”) and to ops (“abundance, resources”), from a root used of productive activity.^[2][8] The masculine use appeared at the end of the 15th century under the influence of the Latin neuter, and grammarians fixed the present distinctions in the 17th century.^[2][6] It is a doublet of opéra and opus.^[1]

Cognate with Italian opera, Occitan obra, Spanish obra, Portuguese obra and Romanian operă.^[8][9]

Earliest recorded meaning

The Canticle of Habakkuk in the Psautier d'Oxford (first half of the 12th century) has ovre for an object created by someone's work.^[5] The Roncevaux has L'ovre est fete et fenie “the work is done and finished”.^[9]

Semantic evolution

Wace uses it for the act of doing (about 1145) and for a literary work (1160–74); Old French also had euvre for sexual union (1174–77).^[5] Mettre a uevre “to put into practice” dates from the early 13th century, mettre en œuvre from 1409, mettre la main à l'œuvre from 1559 (Amyot) and bois d'œuvre “timber” from 1611.^[5][3] In the Church, good works are bonnes œuvres, after Latin bona opera, and an œuvre is a charitable institution.^[2][8]

Œuvres complètes is in Voltaire (1776) and œuvre d'art in Balzac (1831).^[5] The masculine is used for the whole of an artist's work, for building (gros œuvre, à pied d'œuvre, 1798) and in alchemy for the grand œuvre, the philosopher's stone (1626, d'Aubigné).^[5][1]

Timeline

• First half of the 12th century – Ovre, Psautier d'Oxford.^[5]
• c. 1145 – “Action”, Wace.^[5]
• 1160–1174 – A literary work, Wace.^[5]
• 1409 – Mettre en œuvre.^[5]
• Late 15th century – First masculine uses.^[2]
• 1626 – Le grand œuvre, d'Aubigné.^[5]
• 1831 – Œuvre d'art, Balzac.^[5]

Meanings

Noun

1. A work, something made or done: une œuvre d'art, les œuvres de Victor Hugo, œuvres complètes.^[8][1]
2. Work, activity: être à l'œuvre, se mettre à l'œuvre, mettre en œuvre, to implement.^[8][5]
3. A charitable organization, bonnes œuvres, good works.^[8][2]
4. (masculine) The complete works of an artist: l'œuvre gravé de Rembrandt.^[1][8]
5. (masculine, building) Le gros œuvre: the main structure, à pied d'œuvre, on site, ready to start.^[5][8]
6. (masculine, alchemy) Le grand œuvre: the philosopher's stone.^[5]
7. Maître d'œuvre: project manager, main-d'œuvre, labour, workforce.^[8][1]

Word family

• œuvrer
• chef-d'œuvre
• hors-d'œuvre
• désœuvré
• désœuvrement
• main-d'œuvre
• manœuvre

Related words

• opérer
• ouvrer
• ouvrier
• ouvrage
• opéra
• opus

References

1. ^ a b c d e f g h i Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f g Rey, Alain, ed. (1992), Dictionnaire historique de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
3. ^ a b Guilbert, Louis; Lagane, René; Niobey, Georges, eds. (1971–1978; 1989), Grand Larousse de la langue française, Paris: Larousse
4. ^ a b Rey, Alain, ed. (2005), Le Grand Robert de la langue française, electronic version, Paris: Le Robert
5. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o Trésor de la langue française informatisé (2004), ATILF – CNRS & Université de Lorraine, atilf.fr/tlfi; electronic version of Imbs, Paul; Quemada, Bernard, eds. (1971–1994), Trésor de la langue française, Paris: CNRS / Gallimard
6. ^ a b Bloch, Oscar; Wartburg, Walther von (1989), Dictionnaire étymologique de la langue française, 8th ed., Paris: Presses universitaires de France
7. ^ Wartburg, Walther von, et al. (1922–2002), Französisches Etymologisches Wörterbuch, 25 vols., Bonn / Leipzig / Basel: Klopp / Teubner / Zbinden, p. 7, 358b
8. ^ a b c d e f g h i Rey-Debove, Josette; Rey, Alain, eds. (2007), Le Petit Robert de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
9. ^ a b Littré, Émile (1873–1877), Dictionnaire de la langue française, 4 vols. and supplement, Paris: Hachette