diaphragme

Forms

diaphragme m (plural diaphragmes)^[1] Middle French dyaffragme (14th century) and dyaphragme (16th century).^[2]

Etymology

It is borrowed from Late Latin diaphragma (“the diaphragm”), a medical word, from Ancient Greek διάφραγμα (diáphragma, “partition, barrier”), used by Greek physicians for the muscle between the chest and the abdomen.^{[3][4][5][6][7]} The Greek noun is derived from διαφράττω (diaphráttō, “to separate by a partition”), from διά (diá, “across”) and φράσσω (phrássō, “to fence in, block”).^[4][2][6] Rey calls the Greek verb of unknown origin, and Beekes, cited by Etymonline, suggests a substrate word.^[4][8]

Earliest recorded meaning

It is first recorded in 1314 in the Chirurgie of Henri de Mondeville, for the muscle separating the thorax from the abdomen.^[3][4][9] Littré quotes the same work: La 21 rebriche de l'anatomie du dyaffragme.^[2]

Semantic evolution

In the 16th century Ambroise Paré compared the diaphragm to a hedge or partition wall separating the vital organs from the others.^[2]

From the idea of a dividing membrane the word passed to other fields.^[4] Furetière in 1690 used it for the nasal septum and, in optics, for the pierced partitions inside the tubes of telescopes;^[3][4][9] it entered photography in 1857 and spread with it, in phrases for the opening and closing of the lens aperture.^[4] It was later used in electroacoustics (1878), for the vibrating membrane of a loudspeaker or microphone, in mechanics, in architecture, and for a mechanical means of contraception.^[4][10] English diaphragm was borrowed from the same Late Latin word in the late 14th century.^[8]

Timeline

• 1314 – Henri de Mondeville uses it in his Chirurgie.^[3][4]
• 16th century – Paré describes the dyaphragme as a dividing wall.^[2]
• 1690 – Furetière records the nasal septum and the optical sense.^[3][9]
• 1857 – It is used in photography.^[4]
• 1877 – The verb diaphragmer is recorded in Littré's Supplement.^[3]
• 1878 – The acoustic sense appears.^[4]

Meanings

Noun

1. (anatomy) The broad, thin muscle separating the thorax from the abdomen, whose contraction causes breathing in.^[10][11][9]
2. (anatomy, botany) A partition across a body region or a capsular fruit: diaphragme pelvien.^[10][2]
3. (medicine) A female contraceptive, a rubber dome placed over the cervix.^[10][12]
4. (architecture) A transverse wall between two bays in some Romanesque churches: mur diaphragme, arc diaphragme.^[10][11]
5. A vibrating membrane in acoustic devices, as in a loudspeaker or microphone.^[10][12]
6. (optics, photography) An opaque disc with an adjustable opening that limits the light entering an optical device, an aperture.^[11][12][3]

Word family

• diaphragmer

Related words

• Latin diaphragma
• Ancient Greek διάφραγμα (diáphragma)
• English diaphragm

References

1. ^ a b Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f Littré, Émile (1873–1877), Dictionnaire de la langue française, 4 vols. and supplement, Paris: Hachette
3. ^ a b c d e f g 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. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Rey, Alain, ed. (1992), Dictionnaire historique de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
5. ^ Bloch, Oscar; Wartburg, Walther von (1989), Dictionnaire étymologique de la langue française, 8th ed., Paris: Presses universitaires de France
6. ^ a b Rey, Alain, ed. (2005), Le Grand Robert de la langue française, electronic version, Paris: Le Robert
7. ^ Wartburg, Walther von, et al. (1922–2002), Französisches Etymologisches Wörterbuch, 25 vols., Bonn / Leipzig / Basel: Klopp / Teubner / Zbinden, p. 3, 67a
8. ^ a b Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
9. ^ a b c d Guilbert, Louis; Lagane, René; Niobey, Georges, eds. (1971–1978; 1989), Grand Larousse de la langue française, Paris: Larousse
10. ^ a b c d e f Rey-Debove, Josette; Rey, Alain, eds. (2007), Le Petit Robert de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
11. ^ a b c Dictionnaire de français Larousse, larousse.fr/dictionnaires/francais (accessed 2024)
12. ^ a b c Dictionnaire Le Robert en ligne, dictionnaire.lerobert.com (accessed 2024)