Etymologically
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casser

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Pronunciation

  • IPA: /ka.se/[1]
  • IPA: /kɑ.se/[1]

Forms

casser[1] Old French quasser (until the 13th century), casser from about 1160 (Eneas).[2][3][4]

Etymology

It is inherited from Old French quasser, inherited from Latin quassō (“to shake hard; to batter, break”),[2][3][5][6] the frequentative of Latin quatiō (“to shake”), formed on its past participle “quassus” “shattered”.[3][4] For the legal sense “to annul”, the TLFi and Wiktionary point to the meeting of “quassare” with Late Latin cassāre (“to annul”), from “cassus” “void, empty”.[2][1][7]

Compare Old Occitan cassar, Italian “squassare” “to shake” and Spanish cansar (“to tire”).[5] The word was more used in the north of Gallo-Romance than in the south.[5]

Earliest recorded meaning

The Chanson de Roland (about 1100) has Quassét son haume, he smashed his helmet: “to break into pieces”.[2][7]

Semantic evolution

In the 12th century it was also to break bones (li os lui sont quassé), whence, much later, casser la tête (1538), se casser la tête “to rack one's brains” (Mme de Sévigné, 1677), casser les pieds “to bore” (1890) and casser la gueule (Flaubert, 1856).[2][3][7] About 1170 (Chrétien de Troyes) quasser meant “to weaken”, whence voix cassée (Montaigne) and un homme cassé (Corneille, 1636).[2]

From the early 13th century it meant to annul (a judgement, a will, 1549; a privilege, Commynes), whence cassation (1413), and, from 1549 to dismiss an officer (casser aux gages).[2][3][5] Familiar phrases include casser la croûte (1798), payer les pots cassés (1808), casser du sucre sur le dos de qqn (1866), casser sa pipe “to die” (1856), à tout casser (before 1866), se casser “to clear off” (1908) and casser les prix (1957).[2][3] In current speech casser is more usual than briser for concrete breaking, except in Quebec.[3]

Timeline

  • c. 1100 – Quassét in the Chanson de Roland.[2]
  • c. 1160 – The form casser in Eneas.[2]
  • c. 1170 – “To weaken”, in Chrétien de Troyes.[2]
  • Early 13th century – “To annul”.[2]
  • 1413 – Cassation.[5]
  • 1549 – Casser qqn aux gages.[2]
  • 1677 – Se casser la tête in Mme de Sévigné.[2]
  • 1798 – Casser la croûte.[2]
  • 1856 – Casser sa pipe.[2]
  • 1908 – Se casser “to clear off”.[2]

Meanings

Verb

  1. To break: casser un verre, casser une branche, se casser la jambe.[8][1]
  2. (law) To annul, quash: casser un jugement.[2][3]
  3. To dismiss, demote: casser un officier.[2][9]
  4. To break up (with someone).[1]
  5. (intransitive) To break: le fil a cassé.[10]
  6. Familiar phrases: casser la croûte: to have a bite, casser les pieds: to bore stiff, casser sa pipe: to kick the bucket, à tout casser: fantastic; at the most.[2][1]
  7. (reflexive, familiar) Se casser: to clear off, se casser la tête: to rack one's brains.[1][2]

Word family

  • casse
  • casse-noisette
  • casse-noix
  • cassation
  • casseur
  • cassis
  • cassure
  • incassable
  • casse-tête
  • casse-cou
  • casse-pieds
  • cassonade
  • cas
  • secouer
  • concasser
  • fracasser
  • Latin quassō

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u 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. ^ a b c d e f g h Rey, Alain, ed. (1992), Dictionnaire historique de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
  4. ^ a b Rey, Alain, ed. (2005), Le Grand Robert de la langue française, electronic version, 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. ^ Wartburg, Walther von, et al. (1922–2002), Französisches Etymologisches Wörterbuch, 25 vols., Bonn / Leipzig / Basel: Klopp / Teubner / Zbinden, p. 2, 1429a
  7. ^ a b c Littré, Émile (1873–1877), Dictionnaire de la langue française, 4 vols. and supplement, Paris: Hachette
  8. ^ Rey-Debove, Josette; Rey, Alain, eds. (2007), Le Petit Robert de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
  9. ^ Quemada, Bernard, ed. (1959–2006), Datations et documents lexicographiques (Base historique du vocabulaire français, BHVF), Paris: Klincksieck / CNRS / Champion; ATILF
  10. ^ Dictionnaire de français Larousse, larousse.fr/dictionnaires/francais (accessed 2024)