aoûter

Forms

aoûter^[1] Old French aoster,^[2][3] Middle French aouster.^[4][5]

Etymology

It is from French août (“August”), first as Old French aoster.^[2][1][6][3] The month name is from Vulgar Latin agustus, from Latin augustus mensis, the month named in honour of Augustus.^[6][7]

Earliest recorded meaning

The verb is first found as aoster at the end of the 12th century, meaning to bring in the harvest.^[2][3][6] Littré quotes a 13th-century couplet in which peasants vendengent et aoustent, gather grapes and harvest.^[5]

Semantic evolution

Old French août itself often meant the harvest, and the verb kept this sense of harvest work.^[6][3] The DMF has it for reaping a field of wheat in a document of 1398.^[4] The participle aoûté was specialized in arboriculture in 1571,^[3] and the verb came to mean, of seeds, fruit or shoots, to ripen or harden in the August heat.^[8][9][10] Bloch and Wartburg call it little used.^[6] The sense “to harvest” is now old or regional.^[8][9]

Timeline

• Late 12th century – Aoster “to harvest” is recorded.^[2][3]
• 13th century – Littré quotes aoustent beside vendengent.^[5]
• 1398 – A document uses aouster for reaping wheat.^[4]
• 1571 – The participle aoûté is used in arboriculture.^[3]
• 1797 – Seeds that are bien aoûtées, fully ripened, are mentioned in the account of La Pérouse's voyage.^[8]

Meanings

Verb

1. (transitive, dated) To ripen, bring plants to maturity.^[5][10][9]
2. (intransitive, horticulture) Of seeds or fruit, to ripen fully in the heat of August.^[8][10]
3. (intransitive or reflexive, arboriculture) Of shoots and buds, to harden into wood: les jeunes pousses s'aoûtent en fin d'été.^[5][9][10]
4. (transitive, archaic or regional) To harvest, do the summer work in the fields.^[8][9]

Related words

• août
• aoûtat
• aoûtage
• aoûteron
• aoûtien

References

1. ^ a b c d Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d Rey, Alain, ed. (2005), Le Grand Robert de la langue française, electronic version, Paris: Le Robert
3. ^ a b c d e f g Rey, Alain, ed. (1992), Dictionnaire historique de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
4. ^ a b c Dictionnaire du Moyen Français, version 2015 (DMF 2015), ATILF – CNRS & Université de Lorraine, atilf.fr/dmf
5. ^ a b c d e Littré, Émile (1873–1877), Dictionnaire de la langue française, 4 vols. and supplement, Paris: Hachette
6. ^ a b c d e Bloch, Oscar; Wartburg, Walther von (1989), Dictionnaire étymologique de la langue française, 8th ed., Paris: Presses universitaires de France
7. ^ Wartburg, Walther von, et al. (1922–2002), Französisches Etymologisches Wörterbuch, 25 vols., Bonn / Leipzig / Basel: Klopp / Teubner / Zbinden, p. 25, 922a
8. ^ a b c d e 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
9. ^ a b c d e Guilbert, Louis; Lagane, René; Niobey, Georges, eds. (1971–1978; 1989), Grand Larousse de la langue française, Paris: Larousse
10. ^ a b c d Dictionnaire de français Larousse, larousse.fr/dictionnaires/francais (accessed 2024)