euh

Pronunciation

• IPA: /ø/^[1]
• IPA: /œ/^[1]

Forms

euh (interjection); also written heu^[2][1]

Etymology

It is an onomatopoeia.^[2][3][4][5] Bloch and Wartburg date it to 1668 and add that it is obviously older.^[5]

Earliest recorded meaning

Molière's École des femmes (1662) uses it to express annoyance or irritation.^[2][6][3]

Semantic evolution

Since the early 18th century it has expressed hesitation, doubt and embarrassment, as in Regnard's Légataire universel (1708): Et sa fille Isabelle, euh ! la connois-tu ?^[2][6] Racine's Plaideurs (1668) uses it to render a cough, and writers use it more generally to note inarticulate sounds.^[2] The Académie recorded it in 1878.^[2]

Timeline

• 1662 – Annoyance, Molière.^[2]
• 1668 – A cough, Racine.^[2]
• 1708 – Hesitation, Regnard.^[2]
• 1878 – In the Académie's dictionary.^[2]

Meanings

Interjection

1. Er, um: marks hesitation, doubt or embarrassment, or the search for a word.^[4][1]
2. Used to put off answering a question.^[2]
3. (written) Represents an inarticulate sound, a grunt or cough.^[2]

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 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. ^ a b Rey, Alain, ed. (2005), Le Grand Robert de la langue française, electronic version, Paris: Le Robert
4. ^ a b Rey-Debove, Josette; Rey, Alain, eds. (2007), Le Petit Robert de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
5. ^ a b 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. (1992), Dictionnaire historique de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert