aventure

Pronunciation

• IPA: /a.vɑ̃.tyʁ/^[1]

Forms

aventure f (plural aventures)^[1] Old French adventure (11th century).^[2][3]

Etymology

It is inherited from Vulgar Latin *adventūra (“things that are to happen”), a neuter plural taken as a feminine singular noun,^{[4][5][2][6][7][1]} from the future participle of adveniō (“to arrive, happen”) (see advenir and avenir).^[4][3][8] Rey describes it as a borrowing from spoken Latin, the others as inherited.^[4][5][1]

Compare Old Occitan aventura, Spanish aventura and Italian avventura; German Abenteuer comes from French.^[8][5]

Earliest recorded meaning

Rey dates it to 1050, first meaning “fate, destiny”, close to avenir; the Laws of William the Conqueror have per aventure “by chance”: Si alcuns crieve l'oil a l'altre per aventure.^[4][6][8]

Semantic evolution

It also meant “chance” (early 12th century) and “danger”, of which la bonne aventure, the telling of fortunes, survives (15th century); classical French still used bonne and mauvaise aventure for one's lot.^[4][6] Very early it took the nuance “unexpected event” (late 11th century), with par aventure (Chrétien de Troyes) and d'aventure (about 1395), already archaic at the end of the 17th century;^[4][8] Littré notes that par aventure was later revived.^[4][8]

The modern sense, an extraordinary undertaking full of danger and discovery, came with the romances of chivalry (Marie de France's Lais, second half of the 12th century); the modern imagination linked it to travel and exploration.^[4] À l'aventure (1306) replaced en aventure.^[4] In the classical language it also meant a love affair.^[4][1] Grosse aventure “risky profit” (about 1530) was long a term of maritime law, and in African French les aventures are comic strips.^[4]

Timeline

• c. 1050 – “Fate”.^[4]
• Late 11th century – “Unexpected event”.^[4]
• 12th century – aventurer, aventureux.^[5]
• Second half of the 12th century – A knightly adventure, Marie de France.^[4]
• 1306 – À l'aventure.^[4]
• 15th century – La bonne aventure; aventurier.^[4][5]
• c. 1530 – Grosse aventure in maritime law.^[4]

Meanings

Noun

1. An adventure, an unexpected or surprising event: une fâcheuse aventure, il lui est arrivé toutes sortes d'aventures.^[3][1]
2. An undertaking full of risk and novelty, l'aventure, adventure.^[4][3]
3. A venture.^[1]
4. A love affair.^[1][4]
5. Dire la bonne aventure: to tell fortunes, diseuse de bonne aventure, fortune-teller.^[6][3]
6. À l'aventure: at random, aimlessly, (literary) d'aventure, par aventure, by chance.^[4][8]
7. (old) Fate, one's lot.^[3][6]

Word family

• aventurer
• aventureux
• aventurier
• aventurine
• mésaventure

Related words

• avenir
• advenir
• venir

References

1. ^ a b c d e f g h Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b Rey, Alain, ed. (2005), Le Grand Robert de la langue française, electronic version, Paris: Le Robert
3. ^ a b c d e f Rey-Debove, Josette; Rey, Alain, eds. (2007), Le Petit Robert de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
4. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t Rey, Alain, ed. (1992), Dictionnaire historique de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
5. ^ a b c d e Bloch, Oscar; Wartburg, Walther von (1989), Dictionnaire étymologique de la langue française, 8th ed., Paris: Presses universitaires de France
6. ^ a b c d e Guilbert, Louis; Lagane, René; Niobey, Georges, eds. (1971–1978; 1989), Grand Larousse de la langue française, Paris: Larousse
7. ^ Wartburg, Walther von, et al. (1922–2002), Französisches Etymologisches Wörterbuch, 25 vols., Bonn / Leipzig / Basel: Klopp / Teubner / Zbinden, p. 24, 194b
8. ^ a b c d e f Littré, Émile (1873–1877), Dictionnaire de la langue française, 4 vols. and supplement, Paris: Hachette