censé

Forms

censé (feminine censée, masculine plural censés, feminine plural censées)^[1]

Etymology

Used as an adjective, it is the past participle from Middle French censer (“to think, reckon; to censure, reform”), a verb borrowed from Latin cēnseō (“to assess property and rank; to estimate, judge”).^[2][3][4][5] Bloch and Wartburg call it a participle made on the Latin verb.^[6] The Latin word belongs with cēnsus, the source of cens;^[3] Rey traces it to an Indo-European root Proto-Indo-European *kens- (“to proclaim solemnly”).^[3]

The old verb is found in Brantôme in the sense “to declare, deem”.^[2][7]

Earliest recorded meaning

Cotgrave records it in 1611 in the sense “classed, ranked, reckoned, valued”.^[2][3]

Semantic evolution

Censé is the only part of the old verb censer still in use.^[3] It first meant “classed, counted among” (1611), a sense still found in Saint-Simon, and, from 1690 (Furetière) “considered, deemed”, followed by an infinitive or an adjective.^[2][7][3] The legal maxim nul n'est censé ignorer la loi “ignorance of the law is no excuse” keeps this use.^[3][7]

The adverb censément “supposedly” is recorded in 1852 (Rey) or 1863 (Bloch and Wartburg), and was widespread in popular speech.^[3][6]

Timeline

• 16th century – Brantôme uses the verb censer.^[2]
• 1611 – Cotgrave records censé “classed, reckoned”.^[2]
• 1690 – Furetière records the sense “deemed, supposed”.^[2]
• 1852 – The adverb censément.^[3]

Meanings

Adjective

1. Supposed, deemed (followed by an infinitive): elle est censée arriver demain, je ne suis pas censé le dire.^[8][1]
2. Nul n'est censé ignorer la loi: ignorance of the law is no excuse.^[8][7]
3. (classical) Classed, counted among.^[7]

Word family

• censément

Related words

• cens
• censure
• recenser
• Latin cēnseō

Usage notes

Censé is pronounced like sensé (“sensible”), which is unrelated.^[8]

References

1. ^ a b c Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f g 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 i Rey, Alain, ed. (1992), Dictionnaire historique de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
4. ^ Rey, Alain, ed. (2005), Le Grand Robert de la langue française, electronic version, Paris: Le Robert
5. ^ Wartburg, Walther von, et al. (1922–2002), Französisches Etymologisches Wörterbuch, 25 vols., Bonn / Leipzig / Basel: Klopp / Teubner / Zbinden, p. 2, 579a
6. ^ a b Bloch, Oscar; Wartburg, Walther von (1989), Dictionnaire étymologique de la langue française, 8th ed., Paris: Presses universitaires de France
7. ^ a b c d e Guilbert, Louis; Lagane, René; Niobey, Georges, eds. (1971–1978; 1989), Grand Larousse de la langue française, Paris: Larousse
8. ^ a b c Rey-Debove, Josette; Rey, Alain, eds. (2007), Le Petit Robert de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert