crise

Pronunciation

• IPA: /kʁiz/^[1]

Forms

crise f (plural crises)^[1] Crisim, crisin (14th century); crise from 1478.^[2][3][4]

Etymology

It is borrowed from Latin crisis (“decisive stage of a disease”), first used in its accusative form crisin.^[2][3][5] The Latin word is borrowed from Ancient Greek κρίσις (krísis, “decision, judgement”) in its medical sense, from κρίνω (krínō, “to separate, judge”) (see crible, critère).^[3][5][4][6]

Earliest recorded meaning

A 14th-century translation of Bernard de Gordon's Pratique (printed 1495) has crisim as a medical term, the decisive turn in an illness;^[2][3] crise is in the 1478 translation of Guy de Chauliac's Grande Chirurgie.^[2][3]

Semantic evolution

From medicine it passed to the mind, “a violent fit”: crises de passions (before 1685), crise de nerfs (1825).^[2][3] Furetière (1690) records it for a critical moment in moral matters, of an intrigue or a lawsuit;^[2][5] Bloch and Wartburg date the figurative sense to 1621.^[2][5] Rousseau's Émile (1762) speaks of l'état de crise et le siècle des révolutions, a grave phase in the course of things.^[2][3]

The collective, social and economic sense dates from the early 19th century: crise politique (1814), crise financière (1823), crises commerciales (1837, Balzac).^[2][3] Rey notes that the concept itself belongs to the 19th century, when acute and cyclical troubles developed in the industrial economy, notably from 1873; that of 1929 is sometimes simply la crise.^[3] Since 1945 economists tend to say récession, but crise remains common for a general malaise (crise des valeurs).^[3]

Timeline

• 14th century – Crisim, in a medical text.^[2]
• 1478 – Crise, in a translation of Guy de Chauliac.^[2][7]
• before 1685 – Crises de passions.^[2]
• 1690 – A critical moment, in Furetière.^[2]
• 1762 – A grave phase in the course of events, in Rousseau.^[2][8]
• 1814 – Crise politique.^[2]
• 1823 – Crise financière.^[2]
• 1825 – Crise de nerfs, in Brillat-Savarin.^[2]

Meanings

Noun

1. (medicine) The decisive turn in an illness; an attack, fit: crise d'asthme, crise cardiaque.^[7][1]
2. A sudden, violent outburst of feeling: crise de nerfs, crise de larmes, piquer une crise, to throw a tantrum.^[7][1]
3. A crisis, a grave, decisive or troubled phase: crise politique, crise économique, crise d'adolescence.^[7][3][1]
4. A sudden shortage: crise du logement.^[7]
5. (familiar) A sudden fit of enthusiasm: travailler par crises.^[3][7]

Word family

• crisette

Related words

• critique
• critère
• crible
• Ancient Greek κρίσις (krísis)

References

1. ^ a b c d e 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 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 Rey, Alain, ed. (1992), Dictionnaire historique de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
4. ^ a b Rey, Alain, ed. (2005), Le Grand Robert de la langue française, electronic version, Paris: Le Robert
5. ^ a b c d Bloch, Oscar; Wartburg, Walther von (1989), Dictionnaire étymologique de la langue française, 8th ed., Paris: Presses universitaires de France
6. ^ Littré, Émile (1873–1877), Dictionnaire de la langue française, 4 vols. and supplement, Paris: Hachette
7. ^ a b c d e f Rey-Debove, Josette; Rey, Alain, eds. (2007), Le Petit Robert de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
8. ^ Quemada, Bernard, ed. (1959–2006), Datations et documents lexicographiques (Base historique du vocabulaire français, BHVF), Paris: Klincksieck / CNRS / Champion; ATILF