Etymologically
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amant

This is the current revision of this entry, as edited by bogdan on 18 October 2026 at 14:01. This address is a permanent link to this version.
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Pronunciation

  • IPA: /a.mɑ̃/[1]

Forms

amant m (plural amants, feminine amante)[1]

Etymology

It is the present participle, used as a noun, of amer, the old form of aimer,[2][3][4][5] which continues Latin amō (“to love”).[1] Wiktionary instead treats it as borrowed from the Latin present participle amāns, and compares aimant, the participle of the modern verb.[1]

Compare Old Occitan amans, Spanish amante and Italian amante.[6]

Earliest recorded meaning

The Roman d'Eneas (about 1160) has De lui feïsse mon amant (“I would have made him my lover”): a man who loves a woman, tells her so, and is loved by her.[2] The feminine amante is in Amadas et Ydoine (early 13th century).[2]

Semantic evolution

Courtly lyric speaks of the fins amans, the true lovers who must have joy by love's judgment (Couci, 12th century).[6] The sense “one who loves and is loved”, without any idea of illicit love, was very common in the 17th century: Rodrigue is the amant of Chimène, Junie the amante of Britannicus.[2][4] The dictionaries of the late 19th century call it old-fashioned.[2]

The modern sense, a man who has a woman's favours without being married to her, is in La Rochefoucauld's Maximes (1664–1678) and Molière's Misanthrope (1667): On a des amants quand on veut en avoir.[2][5][4]

Timeline

  • c. 1160 – Amant in the Roman d'Eneas.[2]
  • Early 13th century – Amante.[2]
  • 17th century – Very common for a courting lover.[2]
  • 1667 – The modern sense, in Molière's Misanthrope.[2]

Meanings

Noun

  1. A man's or woman's lover outside marriage: Elle a pris un amant, amant de cœur, ils sont amant et maîtresse.[5][1]
  2. Les amants (plural): a couple of lovers.[5]
  3. (dated, literary) One who loves and is loved; a suitor.[5][4][1]
  4. (dated, or Canada) A lover of something, an enthusiast.[1]

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 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. ^ Rey, Alain, ed. (2005), Le Grand Robert de la langue française, electronic version, Paris: Le Robert
  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 d e Rey-Debove, Josette; Rey, Alain, eds. (2007), Le Petit Robert de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
  6. ^ a b Littré, Émile (1873–1877), Dictionnaire de la langue française, 4 vols. and supplement, Paris: Hachette