Etymologically
Log in

et

This is the current revision of this entry, as edited by bogdan on 18 October 2026 at 04:07. This address is a permanent link to this version.
Changes in this edit History

Pronunciation

Forms

et[1] Old French usually e (10th century); the spelling et was restored from Latin in the 12th century.[2][3][1]

Etymology

It is inherited from Old French e, inherited from Latin et (“and; also; yet”), a coordinating conjunction used to join words and clauses, to mark opposition or emphasis, and often found at the head of questions and exclamations.[4][5][2] The Latin word is of Indo-European origin, comparable to Ancient Greek ἔτι (éti, “moreover, still”), Gaulish etic (“and”) and Sanskrit अति (áti, “beyond”), which seems to have been the original sense of the family.[2]

Cognate with Italian e, Occitan e, Catalan i, Spanish y and Portuguese e.[1][6]

Earliest recorded meaning

The Strasbourg Oaths (842) already use it to join parts of a sentence (pro Deo amur et pro christian poblo “for the love of God and for the Christian people”), and before the first of several joined terms; it joins two clauses in the Sequence of Saint Eulalia (881).[4][6]

Semantic evolution

The French conjunction kept the Latin values.[2] About 980 it is found at the head of exclamations and questions, for emphasis, and in 1080 it is added to each term of a list to stress the series.[2][7] It meant “as well as” from 1276 to the 17th century.[2] In numbers it once joined units to dix (dix et sept, now dix-sept); since 1680 it links un to the tens (vingt et un) and quart and demi to the hours (cinq heures et demie).[2]

In mathematics and logic et stands for intersection and the logical product, and can be used as a noun (la fonction et).[2] Et cetera “and the other things” is a Medieval Latin legal formula.[8]

Timeline

  • 842 – Et in the Strasbourg Oaths.[4]
  • 881 – It joins two clauses in the Sequence of Saint Eulalia.[4]
  • c. 980 – At the head of an exclamation or question.[2]
  • 12th century – The Latin spelling et replaces e.[3][2]
  • 1276 – Used for “as well as” by Adam de la Halle.[2][7]
  • 1680 – Et links the units to the tens in numbers like vingt et un.[2]

Meanings

Conjunction

  1. and: joins words, phrases or clauses, marking addition, sequence or consequence.[9][7]
  2. And yet: marks an opposition: je travaille beaucoup et je gagne peu.[7]
  3. (literary) Repeated before each term of a list for emphasis: et la terre, et le fleuve.[7][9]
  4. At the head of a question or exclamation: et vous ?[4][9]
  5. In numbers and times: vingt et un, midi et demi.[2][6]
  • Latin et

Usage notes

The t is never pronounced, even before a vowel, as Palsgrave already noted in the 16th century.[6]

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 Rey, Alain, ed. (1992), Dictionnaire historique de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
  3. ^ a b Rey, Alain, ed. (2005), Le Grand Robert de la langue française, electronic version, Paris: Le Robert
  4. ^ 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
  5. ^ Wartburg, Walther von, et al. (1922–2002), Französisches Etymologisches Wörterbuch, 25 vols., Bonn / Leipzig / Basel: Klopp / Teubner / Zbinden, p. 3, 248a
  6. ^ a b c d Littré, Émile (1873–1877), Dictionnaire de la langue française, 4 vols. and supplement, Paris: Hachette
  7. ^ a b c d e Guilbert, Louis; Lagane, René; Niobey, Georges, eds. (1971–1978; 1989), Grand Larousse de la langue française, Paris: Larousse
  8. ^ Bloch, Oscar; Wartburg, Walther von (1989), Dictionnaire étymologique de la langue française, 8th ed., Paris: Presses universitaires de France
  9. ^ a b c Rey-Debove, Josette; Rey, Alain, eds. (2007), Le Petit Robert de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert