Etymologically
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accuser

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Pronunciation

  • IPA: /a.ky.ze/[1]

Forms

accuser[1] Old French acuser.[2][1]

Etymology

It is borrowed from Latin accūsō (“to call to account, accuse”), from ad- and causa (“cause, lawsuit”) (see cause), a legal word tied to the idea of a trial.[2][3][4][5] Bloch and Wartburg note that the French verb was always influenced by the Latin one.[6] Littré reports Priscian's derivation of the stem from a frequentative of cūdō (“to forge”) but prefers the derivation from the noun for “cause”.[7]

Cognate with Italian accusare, Spanish acusar, Portuguese acusar and Occitan acusar.[4]

Earliest recorded meaning

The Clermont Passion (about 980) has acuser in the sense “to charge, put on trial”;[2][8] accuser quelqu'un de quelque chose is found from 1155.[2][8]

Semantic evolution

As in Latin, one could accuse actions as well as people (about 1152), and, from this came the senses “to point out with hostility” (1205) and, with a thing as subject, “to reveal, show” (1190); the Roman de la Rose says crystals accusent the whole garden to those who look into the water.[2][7] Accuser la réception of a letter is recorded in 1627 and accuser réception in 1835;[2][6] accuser le coup (1927), first in sport, is to show that one has been hit.[2][6]

In art accuser les muscles “to bring out the muscles” is from 1762, and “to emphasize, make stand out” in general from about 1870; reflexive s'accuser “to become more marked” is in Murger (1851).[2][9] The past participle accusé, as a noun, is the accused in criminal law, and accusé de réception is from 1832.[2]

Timeline

  • c. 980 – Acuser in the Clermont Passion.[2][8]
  • 1155 – Accuser quelqu'un de quelque chose.[2]
  • 1190 – “To reveal”, with a thing as subject.[2]
  • 1627 – Accuser la réception.[6][2]
  • 1762 – In art, “to bring out”.[2]
  • 1832 – Accusé de réception.[2]
  • 1927 – Accuser le coup.[2]

Meanings

Verb

  1. To accuse, to present (someone) as guilty: accuser quelqu'un de plagiat.[4][10]
  2. (law) To charge (someone) before a criminal court.[4][11]
  3. To blame (something): accuser le sort.[4][8]
  4. To show, reveal; to bring out, emphasize (a feature).[8][2]
  5. Accuser réception de: to acknowledge receipt of, accuser le coup, to show that one has been hurt.[1][2]
  6. S'accuser: to admit one's guilt: qui s'excuse s'accuse; to become more marked.[4][9]

Word family

  • accusé
  • accusable
  • coaccusé

References

  1. ^ a b c d Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r Rey, Alain, ed. (1992), Dictionnaire historique de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
  3. ^ Rey, Alain, ed. (2005), Le Grand Robert de la langue française, electronic version, Paris: Le Robert
  4. ^ a b c d e f Rey-Debove, Josette; Rey, Alain, eds. (2007), Le Petit Robert de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
  5. ^ Wartburg, Walther von, et al. (1922–2002), Französisches Etymologisches Wörterbuch, 25 vols., Bonn / Leipzig / Basel: Klopp / Teubner / Zbinden, p. 24, 93a
  6. ^ a b c d Bloch, Oscar; Wartburg, Walther von (1989), Dictionnaire étymologique de la langue française, 8th ed., Paris: Presses universitaires de France
  7. ^ a b Littré, Émile (1873–1877), Dictionnaire de la langue française, 4 vols. and supplement, Paris: Hachette
  8. ^ a b c d e Guilbert, Louis; Lagane, René; Niobey, Georges, eds. (1971–1978; 1989), Grand Larousse de la langue française, Paris: Larousse
  9. ^ a b Quemada, Bernard, ed. (1959–2006), Datations et documents lexicographiques (Base historique du vocabulaire français, BHVF), Paris: Klincksieck / CNRS / Champion; ATILF
  10. ^ Dictionnaire Le Robert en ligne, dictionnaire.lerobert.com (accessed 2024)
  11. ^ Dictionnaire de français Larousse, larousse.fr/dictionnaires/francais (accessed 2024)