activer

Forms

activer^[1]

Etymology

It is formed from French actif + -er.^{[2][3][4][5][6]} The adjective actif is from Latin activus.^[3][1]

Earliest recorded meaning

Gerson uses it in the 15th century in the sense “to urge to an action”: virtues need heralds pour activer et esmouvoir les cuers à bien faire, “to stir and move hearts to do good”.^[2]

Semantic evolution

In 1519 it meant to speed up the growth of a plant, but the verb was rare before the 19th century.^[2][3][4] It was taken up again at the end of the 18th century:^[5][7] Boiste's dictionary recorded “to accelerate” in 1800 and “to set in activity” in 1808, marked as new, and Littré still called it a neologism.^[2][8][6] In physics it has meant to make active by activation since 1910, the pronominal s'activer “to bustle about” is recorded from 1927, and in computing it is used for enabling a module or function.^[2][7]

Timeline

• 15th century – Gerson uses activer “to urge to an action”.^[2]
• 1519 – Guillaume Michel uses it of speeding a plant's growth.^[2]
• 1800 – Boiste records “to accelerate”.^[2]
• 1808 – Boiste records “to set in activity” as a new word.^[2][8]
• 1910 – First record in physics.^[2]
• 1927 – S'activer “to bustle about”.^[7]

Meanings

Verb

1. To make faster, to speed up: activer la livraison; familiarly activer le mouvement, to hurry up.^[7][4]
2. To set in action, to activate a device or a function.^[7][1]
3. To make livelier or more effective, to stimulate: the wind stokes up a fire.^[7][6]
4. (chemistry, physics) To activate, to make reactive or radioactive.^[7][2][1]
5. (reflexive) S'activer: to bustle about, to be very busy.^[7][4]

Word family

• activation
• réactiver

Related words

• actif
• activité
• acte

References

1. ^ a b c d e Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k 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
3. ^ a b c 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 Rey, Alain, ed. (2005), Le Grand Robert de la langue française, electronic version, Paris: Le Robert
6. ^ a b c Littré, Émile (1873–1877), Dictionnaire de la langue française, 4 vols. and supplement, Paris: Hachette
7. ^ a b c d e f g h Rey-Debove, Josette; Rey, Alain, eds. (2007), Le Petit Robert de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
8. ^ a b Quemada, Bernard, ed. (1959–2006), Datations et documents lexicographiques (Base historique du vocabulaire français, BHVF), Paris: Klincksieck / CNRS / Champion; ATILF