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aider

Etymology and origin of the French word aider

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Confidence
Established
Formation
Inherited
First attested
late 10th century (aiud)
Inherited from
Latin adiuto via Old French
Ultimate origin
Latin (adiuvō)
Etymology tree
inherited borrowed derived
Latin adiuto
French aider

Pronunciation

Forms

aider[1] Old French aidier (il aiud, late 10th century, aidiez, about 1100) and aïer.[2][3]

Etymology

It is inherited from Old French aidier, inherited from Latin adiūtō (“to help, assist”), the frequentative of adiuvō (“to help”).[2][3][4][5][1] The Old French forms “aïer”, “aiue” were remade from adiūtat, the third person singular.[2]

Cognate with Romanian ajuta, Italian aiutare, Occitan ajudar, Catalan ajudar, Spanish ayudar and Portuguese ajudar.[6][1]

Earliest recorded meaning

The form aiud is found at the end of the 10th century; about 1100 the Chanson de Roland has Prudhom i ot pour son seigneur aider “there was a worthy man to help his lord”.[3][2][7]

Semantic evolution

Old French also built it with an indirect object, aider à quelqu'un (1080), now regional, aider quelqu'un à quelque chose (1125) and aider à “to contribute to” (13th century) remain.[2] The reflexive s'aider de, “to make use of”, dates from the 12th century.[2] The oath se Dieu m'aït, “so help me God”, was common in Old French, and the proverb aide-toi, le ciel t'aidera goes back to 1606.[2]

The noun aide is even older (aiudha, 842).[2][4] In 1923 English mayday was chosen as a radio distress call because it sounds like French m'aider “help me”.[8][1]

Timeline

  • Late 10th century – Aiud.[3][2]
  • c. 1100 – Aider and Deus nous aït in the Chanson de Roland.[7][2]
  • 1125 – Aider quelqu'un à quelque chose.[2]
  • 12th century – S'aider de.[2]
  • 1606 – Aide-toi, Dieu t'aidera.[2]
  • 1690 – Aider à la messe.[2]
  • 1923 – English mayday is coined from m'aider.[8]

Meanings

Verb

  1. To help, assist: aider quelqu'un à se relever.[6][9]
  2. To support with money or means: aider les plus démunis.[10]
  3. Of a thing, to help, be useful: l'alcool aidant.[6]
  4. Aider à: to contribute to, make easier.[6][11]
  5. S'aider de: to make use of.[1][2]
  • aide
  • entraider
  • adjuvant
  • English mayday

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o Rey, Alain, ed. (1992), Dictionnaire historique de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
  3. ^ a b c d Rey, Alain, ed. (2005), Le Grand Robert de la langue française, electronic version, Paris: Le Robert
  4. ^ a b Bloch, Oscar; Wartburg, Walther von (1989), Dictionnaire étymologique de la langue française, 8th ed., Paris: Presses universitaires de France
  5. ^ Wartburg, Walther von, et al. (1922–2002), Französisches Etymologisches Wörterbuch, 25 vols., Bonn / Leipzig / Basel: Klopp / Teubner / Zbinden, p. 24, 161a
  6. ^ a b c d Rey-Debove, Josette; Rey, Alain, eds. (2007), Le Petit Robert de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
  7. ^ a b Littré, Émile (1873–1877), Dictionnaire de la langue française, 4 vols. and supplement, Paris: Hachette
  8. ^ a b Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  9. ^ Dictionnaire Le Robert en ligne, dictionnaire.lerobert.com (accessed 2024)
  10. ^ Guilbert, Louis; Lagane, René; Niobey, Georges, eds. (1971–1978; 1989), Grand Larousse de la langue française, Paris: Larousse
  11. ^ Dictionnaire de français Larousse, larousse.fr/dictionnaires/francais (accessed 2024)

Related etymologies

Cite this entry

“Aider.” Etymologically, 18 Oct. 2026, etymologically.com/fr/aider. Accessed 18 Oct. 2026.

Last edited on . ·