dépens

Forms

dépens m pl (plural only)^[1] Old French despens, also despans;^[2][3] despens was still in use in the 17th century, when dépens appeared.^[2][3]

Etymology

It is inherited from Old French despens, inherited from Latin dispēnsum, the neuter past participle, used as a noun, of dispendō (“to weigh out in distributing, to distribute”).^[4][2][5][1] The verb is formed of dis- and pendō (“to weigh”);^[2][3] it meant “to weigh out” in classical Latin and “to distribute” in imperial Latin, and its derivative dispendium (“expense”) suggests that it also meant “to spend”, for which classical Latin preferred expendō.^[2][6][4]

The verb itself gave Old French despendre “to spend” (12th century), which gave way to dépenser in the early 17th century.^[6][2] The /n/ before /s/ was kept against the usual sound change, probably because the noun was a legal term, as was Medieval Latin dispensum, and was always felt to belong to the verb.^[4][6]

Cognate with Old Occitan despens and Picard dépins.^[6][7]

Earliest recorded meaning

It is first found in Chrétien de Troyes' Erec et Enide (1170), meaning “what one spends”.^[4][3]

Semantic evolution

In the general sense “expense” dépens gave way to dépense, and since the 17th century it has lived on only as a legal term and in the phrase aux dépens de.^[2][6] The legal sense, the costs charged to the losing party in a lawsuit, goes back to about 1260 (despens et domages), a phrase later taken into the Civil Code.^[2][4]

Aux dépens de meant first “at the cost of” (Joinville, 1306), a sense still alive in the 17th century, and since Montaigne (1580) “to the detriment of”;^[4][2] classical French also used it before an infinitive (Mme de Sévigné, 1673).^[4][2] Molière has rire aux dépens de “to laugh at” (1660).^[3]

Timeline

• 1170 – Despens “expense” in Chrétien de Troyes' Erec et Enide.^[4]
• c. 1260 – Legal use in despens et domages in the Livre de Jostice et de Plet.^[4][2]
• 1306 – Aus despens du roy “at the king's cost” in Joinville.^[4]
• 1580 – Montaigne uses aux despens d'autrui for “to the detriment of others”.^[4][8]
• 1609 – À ses dépens in Mathurin Régnier.^[3]
• 1660 – Rire aux dépens de in Molière.^[3]
• 1673 – Mme de Sévigné uses aux dépens de before an infinitive.^[4]
• 1804 – The Civil Code uses tous dépens, dommages et intérêts.^[4]

Meanings

Noun

1. (law, plural) The costs of a lawsuit charged to the losing party: être condamné aux dépens.^[4][3][1]
2. Aux dépens de: at the expense of, with someone else paying: il vit aux dépens de son oncle.^[9][4]
3. Aux dépens de (figurative): to the detriment of: la qualité a progressé aux dépens de la quantité.^[9][4][1]
4. Rire aux dépens de quelqu'un: to make fun of someone.^[7][3]
5. (obsolete) Expenses, what one spends;^[4][7] gagner ses dépens was said of someone whose services make up for what he costs.^[4][7]

Related words

• dépense
• dépenser
• pendre
• Latin dispendium

Usage notes

The word is used only in the plural.^[1][4] Its final s is sounded /z/ in liaison.^[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 Rey, Alain, ed. (1992), Dictionnaire historique de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
3. ^ a b c d e f g h i Guilbert, Louis; Lagane, René; Niobey, Georges, eds. (1971–1978; 1989), Grand Larousse de la langue française, Paris: Larousse
4. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s 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
5. ^ Rey, Alain, ed. (2005), Le Grand Robert de la langue française, electronic version, Paris: Le Robert
6. ^ a b c d e 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 Littré, Émile (1873–1877), Dictionnaire de la langue française, 4 vols. and supplement, Paris: Hachette
8. ^ Quemada, Bernard, ed. (1959–2006), Datations et documents lexicographiques (Base historique du vocabulaire français, BHVF), Paris: Klincksieck / CNRS / Champion; ATILF
9. ^ a b Rey-Debove, Josette; Rey, Alain, eds. (2007), Le Petit Robert de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert