dissection

Forms

dissection f (plural dissections)^[1]

Etymology

It is borrowed from Latin dissectiō (“cutting up”), an Imperial Latin noun formed on the supine of dissecō (“to cut apart”).^[2][3][4] The verb is made of the prefix dis- and secō (“to cut”).^[5] It belongs with disséquer, the French verb taken from the same Latin verb.^[2][4]

Earliest recorded meaning

It is first recorded in 1538, in Jean Canappe's French version of the thirteenth book of Galen's Method of Healing, in the anatomical sense of cutting up a body to study it.^[2][4][6]

Semantic evolution

In the 16th century Ambroise Paré speaks of anatomists learning the body's structure through dissections.^[5] From before 1648 the word was used figuratively, as in Bourdaloue's dissection de notre âme, and it went on to develop other metaphorical and figurative uses,^[2][4] so that it can now mean a close, detailed analysis of a problem or a work.^[7][8] Larousse also gives it a technical sense in geography, the cutting of the ground into lines by running water.^[8]

Timeline

• 1538 – First recorded, in Canappe's translation of Galen.^[2][4]
• 16th century – Ambroise Paré writes of studying the body's structure by anatomical dissections.^[5]
• Before 1648 – Bourdaloue uses it figuratively of the soul.^[2][4]

Meanings

Noun

1. (anatomy) The methodical cutting up of a corpse, an animal or a plant to study its parts and structure, also the result of this;^[7][2][8] table de dissection, a dissecting table.^[7][2][8]
2. (figurative) A close, detailed analysis: la dissection d'un roman.^[7][8]
3. (geography) The cutting of the ground into channels by running water.^[8]

Related words

• disséquer
• section
• Latin dissectiō

References

1. ^ a b Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f g h 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. ^ Rey, Alain, ed. (2005), Le Grand Robert de la langue française, electronic version, Paris: Le Robert
4. ^ a b c d e f Rey, Alain, ed. (1992), Dictionnaire historique de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
5. ^ a b c Littré, Émile (1873–1877), Dictionnaire de la langue française, 4 vols. and supplement, Paris: Hachette
6. ^ Guilbert, Louis; Lagane, René; Niobey, Georges, eds. (1971–1978; 1989), Grand Larousse de la langue française, Paris: Larousse
7. ^ a b c d Rey-Debove, Josette; Rey, Alain, eds. (2007), Le Petit Robert de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
8. ^ a b c d e f Dictionnaire de français Larousse, larousse.fr/dictionnaires/francais (accessed 2024)