consultant

Forms

consultant (feminine consultante, masculine plural consultants, feminine plural consultantes)^[1]

Etymology

It is the present participle from French consulter, used as an adjective and a noun.^[2][3][4] The verb is from Latin cōnsultō (“to deliberate, consult”).^[5]

Earliest recorded meaning

It is first found as an adjective in 1584, in Jean Duret's commentary on the customs of the Bourbonnais.^[2][6]

Semantic evolution

As a noun it first meant, in 1636, a person who asks for a consultation, later a person who consults a doctor.^[2][4] Because consulter means both to give and to seek advice, consultant also means the one who gives it,^[4] first in law and then in medicine: an avocat consultant gives opinions without pleading, a médecin consultant is called in beside the patient's own doctor.^[5][7][8] In recent times the sense “adviser” has prospered in the names of independent professions.^[4]

Timeline

• 1584 – First use, as an adjective, by Jean Duret.^[2][5]
• 1636 – Monet records the noun.^[2][3]

Meanings

Noun

1. A person who gives professional advice; a consultant: un consultant en informatique.^[8][9][1]
2. A person who consults a doctor; a patient.^[8][2]

Adjective

1. Who gives consultations: avocat consultant, médecin consultant (as opposed to médecin traitant).^[8][7][9]

Related words

• consulter
• consultation
• consultatif
• conseil

References

1. ^ a b c Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f 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 Rey, Alain, ed. (2005), Le Grand Robert de la langue française, electronic version, Paris: Le Robert
4. ^ a b c d Rey, Alain, ed. (1992), Dictionnaire historique de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
5. ^ a b c Bloch, Oscar; Wartburg, Walther von (1989), Dictionnaire étymologique de la langue française, 8th ed., Paris: Presses universitaires de France
6. ^ Guilbert, Louis; Lagane, René; Niobey, Georges, eds. (1971–1978; 1989), Grand Larousse de la langue française, Paris: Larousse
7. ^ a b Littré, Émile (1873–1877), Dictionnaire de la langue française, 4 vols. and supplement, Paris: Hachette
8. ^ a b c d Rey-Debove, Josette; Rey, Alain, eds. (2007), Le Petit Robert de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
9. ^ a b Dictionnaire Le Robert en ligne, dictionnaire.lerobert.com (accessed 2024)