dévider

Forms

dévider^[1] Old French desvuidier, also desvider from the 13th century; the modern spelling dates from the 16th century.^[2][3]

Etymology

It is formed from French dé- + vider, properly “to empty the spindle” of its thread.^[2][4][3][1] Vider was earlier vuidier, from Vulgar Latin *vocitus (“empty”).^[5][6] Littré accepted this explanation if the prefix is taken as intensive, but noted that Deschamps's forms for the reel, desvodoir and desvondoir, fit badly with that verb and suggested a link with German winden (“to wind”).^[7]

Earliest recorded meaning

It appears at the end of the 11th century as desvuidier in Rashi's glosses, meaning to wind off the thread that is on the spindle into a skein, which empties the spindle.^[2][8][3]

Semantic evolution

In Old French the verb also meant “to undo, unroll” (early 13th century),^[2] “to empty” (about 1190) and “to shoot crossbow bolts” (about 1310); from 1393 it was used of a hunting dog flushing birds from a spot, a use matching special senses of vider.^[8] In weaving it took the still current sense of winding a skein into a ball (1538).^[8]

Figuratively it came to mean “to recount, reel off” (mid-15th century)^[2] or “to talk at length” (about 1550),^[8] and in the late 16th century “to explain, disentangle”, a sense now lost, like dévider une fourbe “to uncover a trick” (1671).^[8][2] Lamartine in 1830 used it of a hand passing a rosary through its fingers, the source of the phrase dévider son chapelet, to pour out all one has to say.^[2][8][9] Old slang had dévider le jars, to speak argot (1849).^[8] In the French of Réunion it still means “to empty”, as in dévider ses poches.^[8]

Timeline

• Late 11th century – Desvuidier appears in Rashi's glosses.^[2][8]
• c. 1190 – Used for “to empty”.^[8]
• Early 13th century – Used for “to undo, unroll”.^[2]
• c. 1310 – Used for shooting crossbow bolts.^[8]
• 1393 – Used of a hunting dog flushing birds.^[8]
• Mid-15th century – First figurative use, “to reel off” a speech.^[2]
• 1538 – Used for winding a skein into a ball.^[8]
• Before 1592 – Cholières uses it for “to explain, disentangle”.^[2]
• 1671 – Dévider une fourbe “to uncover a trick” is recorded.^[8]
• 1830 – Lamartine uses it of fingers passing over a rosary.^[2][9]
• 1849 – Dévider le jars “to speak argot” is recorded.^[8]

Meanings

Verb

1. To wind the thread from a spindle or bobbin into a skein; to wind a skein into a ball.^[9][2][7]
2. By extension, to unwind or unreel something wound up: dévider un câble.^[9][3][1]
3. To pass beads through one's fingers: elle dévidait les grains de son rosaire.^[9][2]
4. (figurative, dated) Dévider son chapelet: to reel off everything one has to say.^[9][8]
5. (Réunion) To empty.^[8]

Word family

• dévidage
• dévidoir

Related words

• vider
• vide

Usage notes

In older horsemanship, a horse was said to dévider when, moving on two tracks, its shoulders went too fast and its hindquarters did not follow.^[7]

References

1. ^ a b c d Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n 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 Guilbert, Louis; Lagane, René; Niobey, Georges, eds. (1971–1978; 1989), Grand Larousse de la langue française, Paris: Larousse
4. ^ Rey, Alain, ed. (2005), Le Grand Robert de la langue française, electronic version, Paris: Le Robert
5. ^ Bloch, Oscar; Wartburg, Walther von (1989), Dictionnaire étymologique de la langue française, 8th ed., Paris: Presses universitaires de France
6. ^ Wartburg, Walther von, et al. (1922–2002), Französisches Etymologisches Wörterbuch, 25 vols., Bonn / Leipzig / Basel: Klopp / Teubner / Zbinden, p. 14, 594a
7. ^ a b c Littré, Émile (1873–1877), Dictionnaire de la langue française, 4 vols. and supplement, Paris: Hachette
8. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q Rey, Alain, ed. (1992), Dictionnaire historique de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
9. ^ a b c d e f Rey-Debove, Josette; Rey, Alain, eds. (2007), Le Petit Robert de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert