absoudre

Forms

absoudre^[1] Old French absoldre, assoldre and assoudre, the forms with ass- being the usual ones until the 15th century.^[2][3][4] In Palsgrave's time it was written assouldre and pronounced assoudre.^[5]

Etymology

It is inherited from Old French assoudre, inherited from Latin absolvō (“to free from an obligation, acquit”),^[6][1][7] formed from ab- and solvō (“to loosen”).^[8][5] The Latin verb meant “to free from an obligation or charge” from Plautus on, “to acquit” in Cicero, and in Christian Latin “to forgive sins” (Tertullian).^[6][8]

Bloch and Wartburg explain the initial ⟨ab-⟩ of the modern form as remade on the Latin word, because of the verb's legal and religious use.^[3] Wiktionary adds that the forms with ⟨lv⟩ (⟨nous absolvons⟩) are learned, while spoken Middle French had analogical forms with ⟨-oud-⟩, found until the 18th century.^[1]

Cognate with Italian assolvere, Catalan absoldre, Spanish absolver, Portuguese absolver and Romanian absolvi.^[6][3]

Earliest recorded meaning

It is first recorded in the 10th-century Vie de saint Léger, in a religious sense: il los absols et pardonet “he absolved and forgave them”.^[6][8][3]

Semantic evolution

Old French also used it often in law, for “to free someone from an oath, a debt or an obligation” (about 1160, Wace), a sense now gone;^[8][6] in 1338 it is used for relieving an abbess of her office.^[6] From the religious sense came, from the 16th century, the figurative uses “to pardon, excuse”.^[8]

The past participle absous meant “acquitted, found innocent” in the 17th and 18th centuries, as the verb did.^[8] Its feminine gave absoute (1319, absolte), first “absolution of sins”, then (1606) the ceremony of collective absolution.^[8][3]

Timeline

• 10th century – Absols in the Vie de saint Léger.^[6][3]
• c. 1100 – Assols in the Chanson de Roland.^[5]
• c. 1160 – Wace uses assoldre for “to release from an obligation”.^[6]
• 1319 – The noun absolte “absolution” appears.^[8]
• 1338 – Used for “to relieve of an office”.^[6]
• 14th century – Jean d'Outremeuse uses it for “to permit”.^[6]
• 16th century – Figurative sense “to pardon, excuse”.^[8]
• 1606 – Absoute names the ceremony of collective absolution.^[8]

Meanings

Verb

1. (Catholic liturgy) To remit the sins of someone, give absolution to.^[9][10]
2. To pardon or excuse someone.^[9][4]
3. (law) To discharge an offender whose act the law does not punish.^[9][11][10]

Word family

• absoute

Related words

• absolution
• résoudre
• solution
• Latin absolvō

Usage notes

The past participle is irregular: absous, feminine absoute.^[4][10] Montaigne used the past historic j'absolus, Apollinaire j'absolvis.^[4] In Belgian French one says les absoutes.^[8]

References

1. ^ a b c d Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ Rey, Alain, ed. (2005), Le Grand Robert de la langue française, electronic version, Paris: Le Robert
3. ^ a b c d e f Bloch, Oscar; Wartburg, Walther von (1989), Dictionnaire étymologique de la langue française, 8th ed., Paris: Presses universitaires de France
4. ^ a b c d Guilbert, Louis; Lagane, René; Niobey, Georges, eds. (1971–1978; 1989), Grand Larousse de la langue française, Paris: Larousse
5. ^ a b c Littré, Émile (1873–1877), Dictionnaire de la langue française, 4 vols. and supplement, Paris: Hachette
6. ^ a b c d e f g h i j 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
7. ^ Wartburg, Walther von, et al. (1922–2002), Französisches Etymologisches Wörterbuch, 25 vols., Bonn / Leipzig / Basel: Klopp / Teubner / Zbinden, p. 24, 54a
8. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Rey, Alain, ed. (1992), Dictionnaire historique de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
9. ^ a b c Rey-Debove, Josette; Rey, Alain, eds. (2007), Le Petit Robert de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
10. ^ a b c Dictionnaire Le Robert en ligne, dictionnaire.lerobert.com (accessed 2024)
11. ^ Dictionnaire de français Larousse, larousse.fr/dictionnaires/francais (accessed 2024)