emprisonner

Forms

emprisonner^[1] Old French texts quoted by Littré also spell it with ⟨enpris-⟩ and ⟨-prisun-⟩.^[2]

Etymology

It is formed from French en- + prison + -er.^[3][4][5][6] The noun prison is from Latin prēnsiō, a form of prehēnsiō (“seizing, arrest”),^[7][8] which first meant “taking” and then the place where one is held.^[7]

Cognate with Old Occitan empreisonar and Italian imprigionare.^[2]

Earliest recorded meaning

It is first found about 1135 in the Couronnement de Louis, meaning “to put in prison”;^[3][6] the GLLF cites Gaimar about 1138.^[9] The sense “to hold as if in prison” is as old.^[6]

Semantic evolution

In Old French the verb was used both literally and of love, which in a line of the 13th century imprisons the free and frees the imprisoned.^[2] With a thing as object it came to mean “to contain, to enclose tightly” (1806, Delille), stressing the narrow space, and with an abstract noun it expressed the idea of confining someone in something (before 1842, Stendhal).^[6][9] The noun emprisonnement is recorded from 1275.^[6]

English imprison (about 1300) comes from Old French emprisoner.^[10]

Timeline

• c. 1135 – First record, in the Couronnement de Louis.^[3]
• c. 1138 – Gaimar uses it.^[9]
• 1275 – Emprisonnement is recorded.^[6]
• c. 1300 – English borrows it as imprison.^[10]
• 1806 – Delille uses it of a thing that holds tightly.^[9][6]
• Before 1842 – Stendhal uses it figuratively.^[9][6]

Meanings

Verb

1. To put in prison, imprison: on emprisonna les deux contrebandiers.^[3][5][2]
2. To shut up as if in a prison, to confine.^[5][2]
3. To hold tightly, constrict: un col qui emprisonne la gorge.^[5][9]
4. (figurative) To deprive of freedom of action or judgement.^[9][5]
5. (technical) Of gases or liquids: to hold in, keep from escaping.^[2]
6. S'emprisonner: to shut oneself away.^[2]

Related words

• prison
• prisonnier
• English imprison

References

1. ^ a b Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f g Littré, Émile (1873–1877), Dictionnaire de la langue française, 4 vols. and supplement, Paris: Hachette
3. ^ a b c d 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. ^ Rey, Alain, ed. (2005), Le Grand Robert de la langue française, electronic version, Paris: Le Robert
5. ^ a b c d e Rey-Debove, Josette; Rey, Alain, eds. (2007), Le Petit Robert de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
6. ^ a b c d e f g h Rey, Alain, ed. (1992), Dictionnaire historique de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
7. ^ a b Bloch, Oscar; Wartburg, Walther von (1989), Dictionnaire étymologique de la langue française, 8th ed., Paris: Presses universitaires de France
8. ^ Wartburg, Walther von, et al. (1922–2002), Französisches Etymologisches Wörterbuch, 25 vols., Bonn / Leipzig / Basel: Klopp / Teubner / Zbinden, p. 9, 355b
9. ^ a b c d e f g Guilbert, Louis; Lagane, René; Niobey, Georges, eds. (1971–1978; 1989), Grand Larousse de la langue française, Paris: Larousse
10. ^ a b Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com