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déplacer

Etymology and origin of the French word déplacer

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Confidence
Established
Formation
Derivation
First attested
1404
Ultimate origin
Latin (platea)

Pronunciation

  • IPA: /de.pla.se/[1]

Forms

déplacer[1] Middle French desplacer.[2]

Etymology

It is formed from dé- and place with a verb ending;[3][2][1] the TLFi also sees it as the opposite of emplacer (see emplacement).[3] The noun continues Latin platea (“broad street”), which took the sense “public square” in Late Latin.[4] Littré compares Picard déplacher.[5]

Earliest recorded meaning

A text of 1404, quoted in a note to the diary of Nicolas de Baye, has les avoient desplacé, “they had moved them”.[3][2]

Semantic evolution

In the 16th century the verb was also intransitive, “to leave one's place, march off”, as in Jean Marot and in Montluc's Mémoires.[5] The figurative déplacé “unseemly, out of place” is recorded by Trévoux in 1752, and déplacer la question by the Académie in 1835.[3] Littré (1863–1864) records déplacer un fonctionnaire, to transfer an official, often as a punishment.[3][6] In physics a ship déplace its weight in water (1890).[3] After the Second World War personnes déplacées, for people uprooted by war or politics, appears in Camus.[3] The reflexive se déplacer, to move about, travel, is common in modern French.[1][7]

Timeline

  • 1404 – Desplacer “to move (something)”.[3]
  • 1752 – Déplacé “unseemly”, in Trévoux.[3]
  • 1835 – Déplacer la question, in the Académie.[3]
  • 1863 – “To transfer an official”, in Littré.[3]
  • 1890 – Of a floating body, in physics.[3]
  • 1944–1948 – Personnes déplacées, in Camus.[3]

Meanings

Verb

  1. To move something from its place: déplacer un meuble, déplacer un rendez-vous.[7][8]
  2. To transfer someone to another post: déplacer un fonctionnaire; to displace a population.[7][6]
  3. (figurative) Déplacer la question, le problème: to shift the point of a difficulty.[7][6]
  4. (nautical) Of a ship, to displace a given weight of water: navire qui déplace 1 000 tonnes.[7]
  5. Se déplacer: to move about; to travel.[1][7]
  6. Déplacer des montagnes: to move mountains.[1][7]

Word family

  • déplacement
  • déplaçable
  • déplacé

References

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

“Déplacer.” Etymologically, 18 Oct. 2026, etymologically.com/fr/d%C3%A9placer. Accessed 18 Oct. 2026.

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