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ce

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ce1 this, that (determiner)

Pronunciation

  • IPA: /sə/[1]
  • IPA (Paris): /sø/[1]

Forms

ce m (before a vowel sound cet, feminine cette, plural ces)[1] Old French cest, cist, feminine ceste (842), and forms with initial i- (icest) that disappeared about the 14th century.[2][3][4]

Etymology

The determiner “ce”, “cet”, “cette”, “ces” is inherited from Old French cest, inherited from Vulgar Latin *ecce iste, a form of Latin iste (“this, that”) reinforced by ecce (“behold”).[2][3][4][1] The masculine “ce” (12th century) is the reduction before a consonant both of “cest” and of cel (whence celui), from *ecce ille.[3][1] In the Strasbourg Oaths the form is still “ist”; the “c” was added later by analogy with “cil”, where it was needed because plain “il” had become the personal pronoun.[3]

Classical Latin had three demonstratives, hic, “iste” and ille, Old French reduced the system to two terms, near (“cest”) and far (“cel”), modern “celui-ci” and “celui-là”, perhaps because Frankish too had only two.[3] Cognate with Occitan cest, Spanish aqueste and Italian questo.[4]

Earliest recorded meaning

The Strasbourg Oaths (842) have the masculine cist in cist meon fradre Karlo “this brother of mine Charles”.[2][4]

Semantic evolution

In Old French cest, ceste generally marked nearness, as opposed to cel, cele.[3] As both came to be used before nouns without distinction, nearness and distance are now marked by adding -ci and -là (ce livre-ci, ce livre-là).[3][5]

Meanings

Determiner

  1. this, that: points to a person or thing, cet before a vowel, feminine cette, plural ces.[1][5]
  2. With -ci or -là to mark nearness or distance: ce jour-là.[5][3]

Word family

ce2 it, that (pronoun)

Pronunciation

  • IPA: /sə/[1]
  • IPA (Paris): /sø/[1]

Forms

ce (c before a vowel, ç before a).[5][2] Old French czo (about 881), ço, iço, ice, ce from 1050, a weakened form, ice disappeared in the 15th century.[6][7][3]

Etymology

The neuter pronoun “ce” is inherited from Old French ço, inherited from Vulgar Latin *ecce hoc, a reinforced form that replaced the simple demonstrative hoc (“this”).[6][2][3] “Hoc” was the demonstrative of the first person, used for what is nearest the speaker; it is made of an old demonstrative “ho-” with the particle “-c”.[6] The same Latin “hoc” survives in Old French o and in oui.[4][3]

Cognate with Italian ciò and Old Occitan aisso.[3][4]

Earliest recorded meaning

The Sequence of Saint Eulalia (about 881) has czo, the invariable neuter pronoun.[7][6]

Semantic evolution

As it became unstressed, ce was replaced as a stressed pronoun by cela (14th century), except in archaic turns and phrases such as ce faisant, sur ce.[6][3] It is used mostly with être, and in formal style with sembler and devoir (ce semble is still found in the 17th century).[6][7] Est-ce in questions dates from 1080, and c'est to introduce a clause or highlight part of a sentence from 1050.[6] C'est-à-dire (1306) translates Latin id est, and exclamative ce que (ce que tu es drôle !) is found before 1710.[6]

Timeline

  • c. 881 – Czo in the Sequence of Saint Eulalia.[7]
  • c. 1050 – C'est introducing a relative clause.[6]
  • 1080 – Est-ce in questions.[6]
  • 1306 – C'est-à-dire.[6]
  • 14th century – Ceci and cela are formed.[3]
  • before 1710 – Exclamative ce que.[6]

Meanings

Pronoun

  1. It, that: subject of être: c'est beau, ce sont mes amis.[5][1]
  2. C'est… qui, c'est… que: highlights part of a sentence: c'est lui qui l'a dit.[7][5]
  3. Ce qui, ce que, ce dont: what, the thing which: ce qui arriva était prévisible.[8]
  4. (familiar) Ce que: how (exclamative): ce qu'il est bête !.[8][6]

Word family

References

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