coûter

Pronunciation

• IPA: /ku.te/^[1]

Forms

coûter^[1] Old French coster, Middle French couster, couter is a spelling variant.^[2][1]

Etymology

It is inherited from Old French coster, inherited from Latin cōnstō (“to stand firm; to consist of; to cost”), formed with cum on stō (“to stand”).^{[3][2][4][5][6][1]} The sense “to cost” developed in Latin with an ablative or genitive of price; only that sense passed into French.^[2][4] The same Latin verb gave constat and consister.^[2][1]

Cognate with Occitan costar, Spanish costar, Portuguese custar and Italian costare.^[7]

Earliest recorded meaning

Chrétien de Troyes's Érec et Énide (about 1165) uses it impersonally and figuratively: Et dient que trop chier li coste “and they say it costs him too dear”.^[3][2]

Semantic evolution

In Yvain (1172) it is used literally, “to require expense”.^[3][2] Berte (13th century) has Sixante sols cousta, and Joinville reports that the queen said the work had cost a hundred pounds.^[7] Amyot (16th century) has en couster la vie “to cost one's life”, prix coûtant “cost price” dates from 1679, and coûte que coûte “at all costs” from 1802.^[3][2]

At first intransitive, the only use Littré thought correct, it has had transitive uses since the 17th century, as in coûter les yeux de la tête “to cost an arm and a leg”.^[2][8]

Timeline

• c. 1155 – The noun cust “cost”.^[2]
• c. 1165 – Coster, figurative, Chrétien de Troyes.^[3]
• 1172 – “To require expense”, Yvain.^[3]
• 16th century – En couster la vie, Amyot.^[3]
• 1679 – Prix coûtant.^[3]
• 1802 – Coûte que coûte.^[2]

Meanings

Verb

1. To cost: combien ça coûte ?, coûter cher, coûter cent euros.^[9][1]
2. To be painful, demand an effort: cet aveu lui a coûté.^[2][9]
3. To cost (someone something): cela lui a coûté bien des ennuis, coûter la vie.^[2][3]
4. Coûte que coûte: at all costs, coûter les yeux de la tête, to cost a fortune.^[2][8]

Word family

• coût
• coûteux
• coûtant
• surcoût

Related words

• constat
• consister
• Latin cōnstō

References

1. ^ a b c d e f Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ 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
3. ^ a b c d e f g h i 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
4. ^ a b Bloch, Oscar; Wartburg, Walther von (1989), Dictionnaire étymologique de la langue française, 8th ed., Paris: Presses universitaires de France
5. ^ Rey, Alain, ed. (2005), Le Grand Robert de la langue française, electronic version, Paris: Le Robert
6. ^ Wartburg, Walther von, et al. (1922–2002), Französisches Etymologisches Wörterbuch, 25 vols., Bonn / Leipzig / Basel: Klopp / Teubner / Zbinden, p. 2, 1080b
7. ^ a b Littré, Émile (1873–1877), Dictionnaire de la langue française, 4 vols. and supplement, Paris: Hachette
8. ^ a b Guilbert, Louis; Lagane, René; Niobey, Georges, eds. (1971–1978; 1989), Grand Larousse de la langue française, Paris: Larousse
9. ^ a b Rey-Debove, Josette; Rey, Alain, eds. (2007), Le Petit Robert de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert