Etymologically
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douzaine

Etymology and origin of the French word douzaine

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Confidence
Established
Formation
Derivation
First attested
1209, Renclus de Molliens
Ultimate origin
Latin (duodecim)

Pronunciation

  • IPA: /du.zɛn/[1]

Forms

douzaine f (plural douzaines)[1] Old French dozaine, dousaine.[2][1]

Etymology

It is from French douze + -aine, formed in Old French on doze (“twelve”).[3][1][4] Douze comes from Latin duodecim (“twelve”),[5] through Vulgar Latin *dōdeci.[1]

Cognate with Occitan dotzena, Catalan dotzena, Spanish docena and Portuguese dúzia.[2]

Earliest recorded meaning

The TLFi's first record is in the Carité of the Renclus de Molliens (1209); the GLLF and the Grand Robert date it to the late 12th century, in the Roman de Renart, where Renart eats a dozen of something until his belly is full.[3][6][4][2]

Semantic evolution

By the 13th century it was also used loosely for a number of about twelve, as in Rutebeuf.[6][2] In the 14th century la douzaine was the body of twelve sergeants of the Châtelet of Paris, and a dozaine de terre a measure of land.[2] The phrase treize à la douzaine “thirteen for the price of twelve” is found in 1551, and in the 16th century au compte de la douzaine meant “common, ordinary”, as à la douzaine “by the dozen, in quantity” does today.[3][2][7] Twelve dozen make a grosse.[7]

English dozen (about 1300) was borrowed from Old French dozaine.[8]

Timeline

  • late 12th century – Dozaine in the Roman de Renart.[6][4]
  • 1209 – Used by the Renclus de Molliens.[3]
  • 13th century – Rutebeuf uses it for about twelve.[6]
  • c. 1300 – English borrows it as doseine.[8]
  • 1551 – Treize en la douzaine is recorded.[3]

Meanings

Noun

  1. A dozen, a set of twelve things of the same kind: une douzaine d'œufs.[7][9]
  2. About twelve: un enfant d'une douzaine d'années.[7][9]
  3. Treize à la douzaine: thirteen for the price of twelve.[7][6]
  4. À la douzaine (familiar): in large numbers; commonplace.[7][9]

Word family

  • demi-douzaine
  • centaine
  • cinquantaine
  • dizaine
  • huitaine
  • quarantaine
  • quinzaine
  • soixantaine
  • trentaine
  • vingtaine
  • grosse
  • douze
  • douzième
  • Latin duodecim
  • English dozen

References

  1. ^ a b c d e 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 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 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. ^ a b c d e 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 Rey-Debove, Josette; Rey, Alain, eds. (2007), Le Petit Robert de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
  8. ^ a b Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  9. ^ a b c Dictionnaire de français Larousse, larousse.fr/dictionnaires/francais (accessed 2024)
Cite this entry

“Douzaine.” Etymologically, 18 Oct. 2026, etymologically.com/fr/douzaine. Accessed 18 Oct. 2026.

Last edited on . ·