adage

Forms

adage m (plural adages)^[1]

Etymology

It is borrowed from Latin adagium (“saying, proverb”),^[2][3][4][1] the Latin synonym of prōverbium.^[4][2] The older Latin form was adagiō, found from Varro; it probably took its later form on the model of the word for proverb.^[2][4] It was linked by a false etymology with ad and agō, and is probably from an old form of the defective verb aiō (“I say”).^[2][4] Rey adds that this verb has been compared with Greek and Armenian words without convincing proof of its Indo-European origin.^[4] Littré still explained the word as “towards” + “to drive”, a saying that urges one on.^[5]

The word spread in New Latin through Erasmus's collection of adages, first published in 1500.^[4][2]

Earliest recorded meaning

The TLFi's first record is from 1529, in Loys Laserre's life of Saint Jerome, which mentions Erasme en ses adages (“Erasmus in his adages”); the sense is “maxim, saying”.^[2][6] The DHLF dates it to 1527, in Gringore.^[4]

Semantic evolution

In the 16th century adage was used of any fixed formula, either a figurative expression or a proverb or saying.^[4] From the 17th century it narrowed to a formula close to a maxim or sentence, often stating a legal principle.^[4] The adjectives adagial (1583) and adagiaire (1866) did not survive.^[4]

Chifflet's grammar, at the end of the 17th century, notes that the a of the second syllable was pronounced long, as in âge; it is now short, as in cage.^[5]

Timeline

• 1500 – Erasmus publishes the first edition of his Latin collection of adages.^[2][4]
• 1527 – First French record according to the DHLF, in Gringore.^[4]
• 1529 – Loys Laserre mentions Erasmus's adages.^[2][6]
• 1549 – Robert Estienne's French–Latin dictionary glosses adage with Latin adagium and proverbium.^[2]
• 17th century – The word specializes in the sense “maxim, often legal”.^[4]

Meanings

Noun

1. An old, widely known maxim or saying stating a practical rule or a principle, often a legal one: comme dit l'adage.^[7][2][6]

Related words

• proverbe
• Latin adagium

Usage notes

A second adage is a dance term for a sequence of slow movements, often performed with a partner's support; the Grand Robert numbers it adage 2 and dates it to the early 20th century, as an adaptation of the Italian musical term adagio.^[8][7] Quemada's datings put it in the TLFi in 1924 and in the FEW in 1928.^[9]

References

1. ^ a b c Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ 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
3. ^ Bloch, Oscar; Wartburg, Walther von (1989), Dictionnaire étymologique de la langue française, 8th ed., Paris: Presses universitaires de France
4. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m Rey, Alain, ed. (1992), Dictionnaire historique de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
5. ^ a b Littré, Émile (1873–1877), Dictionnaire de la langue française, 4 vols. and supplement, Paris: Hachette
6. ^ a b c Guilbert, Louis; Lagane, René; Niobey, Georges, eds. (1971–1978; 1989), Grand Larousse de la langue française, Paris: Larousse
7. ^ a b Rey-Debove, Josette; Rey, Alain, eds. (2007), Le Petit Robert de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
8. ^ Rey, Alain, ed. (2005), Le Grand Robert de la langue française, electronic version, Paris: Le Robert
9. ^ Quemada, Bernard, ed. (1959–2006), Datations et documents lexicographiques (Base historique du vocabulaire français, BHVF), Paris: Klincksieck / CNRS / Champion; ATILF