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cours

Etymology and origin of the French word cours

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Confidence
Established
Formation
Inherited
First attested
c. 1100, Chanson de Roland (curs)
Inherited from
Latin cursus
Ultimate origin
Latin (currō)
Etymology tree
inherited borrowed derived
Latin curro
French courir
French courant
Latin cursus
English corsair
French cours

Pronunciation

Forms

cours m (invariable)[1]

Etymology

It is inherited from Latin cursus (“running; journey, voyage; course of the stars, of a river, of life”), from currō (“to run”), the source of courir.[2][3][4][1][5] Most of its French senses already existed in Latin, Rey notes that it is impossible to say which were taken again from Latin and which developed within French.[4][3] course and cursus are doublets.[1]

Cognate with Romanian curs, Italian corso and Old Occitan cors.[6][7]

Earliest recorded meaning

The Chanson de Roland (about 1100) uses it for the act of running: Descent à pied, alet i est plein curs (“he dismounts and goes there at a full run”).[2][7]

Semantic evolution

The sense “running” was taken over by course in the 13th century.[8] The voyage of a ship is cours about 1120, whence par long cours (1529) and voyage de long cours (Furetière, 1690); the movement of the stars about 1170, and, perhaps through it, the course of time (Benoît de Sainte-Maure), now chiefly in au cours de and suivre son cours.[2][3][9] The flow of a river appears before 1200, cours d'eau in the early 16th century, and donner libre cours (1640) began with tears.[2][3]

Oresme (about 1370) uses it for the circulation of money and goods, and in 1602 it means a rate of exchange, whence avoir cours (1627), figuratively from 1671.[2][3] In education it meant a course of study (1331), teaching (Nicot, 1606), a lesson (1694), a school (1882) and a grade of primary school (1887, cours élémentaire, cours moyen).[2][3] Its use for a broad avenue dates from the Cours-la-Reine laid out by Marie de Médicis in 1616, influenced by Italian corso.[2][3]

Timeline

  • c. 1100 – “Running”, in the Chanson de Roland.[2]
  • c. 1120 – The voyage of a ship.[2]
  • c. 1170 – The course of the stars; of time.[2]
  • 1331 – A course of study.[2]
  • c. 1370 – The circulation of money, in Oresme.[2]
  • 1602 – An exchange rate.[2]
  • 1616 – The Cours-la-Reine in Paris.[2][3]
  • 1694 – A lesson.[2]
  • 1887 – Cours élémentaire, cours moyen.[2]

Meanings

Noun

  1. The flow, course of a river: le cours du Rhône, cours d'eau, a watercourse.[10][11][2]
  2. The course of the stars.[10]
  3. The course of time or events: au cours de, suivre son cours.[1][3]
  4. Donner libre cours à: to give free rein to.[3][8]
  5. (finance) A rate, price: le cours du dollar, avoir cours, to be legal tender, to be current.[3][2]
  6. A class, lesson, lecture: un cours d'histoire; a course of study; a textbook.[10][2]
  7. A grade of French primary school: cours préparatoire, élémentaire, moyen.[3][2]
  8. A private school: cours de danse.[3]
  9. A broad avenue.[1][3]
  10. Au long cours: (of a voyage) deep-sea.[3]

Word family

  • coursier
  • coursière

Usage notes

The final ⟨s⟩ is silent, Féraud and Gattel noted a pronunciation with /s/, which Littré called bad.[2][7]

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 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 i j k l m n o Rey, Alain, ed. (1992), Dictionnaire historique de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
  4. ^ a b Bloch, Oscar; Wartburg, Walther von (1989), Dictionnaire étymologique de la langue française, 8th ed., Paris: Presses universitaires de France
  5. ^ Wartburg, Walther von, et al. (1922–2002), Französisches Etymologisches Wörterbuch, 25 vols., Bonn / Leipzig / Basel: Klopp / Teubner / Zbinden, p. 2, 1576a
  6. ^ Meyer-Lübke, Wilhelm (1935), Romanisches etymologisches Wörterbuch, 3rd ed., Heidelberg: Winter
  7. ^ a b c Littré, Émile (1873–1877), Dictionnaire de la langue française, 4 vols. and supplement, Paris: Hachette
  8. ^ a b 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. ^ a b c Dictionnaire de français Larousse, larousse.fr/dictionnaires/francais (accessed 2024)
  11. ^ Dictionnaire Le Robert en ligne, dictionnaire.lerobert.com (accessed 2024)

Related etymologies

Cite this entry

“Cours.” Etymologically, 18 Oct. 2026, etymologically.com/fr/cours. Accessed 18 Oct. 2026.

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