exténuer

Forms

exténuer^[1]

Etymology

It is borrowed from Latin extenuō (“to make thin, to weaken, to lessen”), from ex- and tenuis (“thin, fine”).^{[2][3][4][5][6]} The GLLF takes the verb from tenuō (“to make thin”), itself from the adjective.^[7] Compare Old Occitan extenuar, Spanish extenuar and Italian estenuare.^[8]

Earliest recorded meaning

The TLFi's first record is the past participle in a 1478 text of Guy de Chauliac's Grande Chirurgie: le corps devient extenué “the body becomes wasted”.^[2][3] The Petit Robert and the Grand Robert date the word to 1344, or the 14th century.^[9][4]

Semantic evolution

The active verb is found from 1495 in the sense “to wear out, to sap the strength of”.^[2][3] In the 16th century it also took up senses of its Latin source: figuratively “to lessen greatly, to play down” (1541, Calvin) and literally “to make very thin” (1552, Robert Estienne); these are now almost out of use.^[3][7] Rabelais (1534) speaks of drying, extenuantes foods.^[2] In the intellectual sense of making less, atténuer has taken its place.^[5]

Today it is used mostly in the passive, in the past participle exténué and in the reflexive s'exténuer (1734).^[3] The adjective exténuant “exhausting” dates from 1845.^[3]

Timeline

• 1478 – The past participle appears in the Grande Chirurgie of Guy de Chauliac.^[2][3]
• 1495 – First active use, “to exhaust”.^[2][3][5]
• 1534 – Rabelais uses extenuantes of foods.^[2]
• 1541 – Calvin uses it for “to diminish, play down”.^[7][3]
• 1552 – Robert Estienne records it for “to make thin”.^[7][3]
• 1734 – The reflexive s'exténuer is recorded.^[3]
• 1845 – The adjective exténuant appears.^[3]

Meanings

Verb

1. To exhaust, to wear out completely: cette longue marche m'a exténué.^[9][10][1]
2. (reflexive) S'exténuer: to wear oneself out: il s'exténue à réparer la vieille grange.^[8][3]
3. (obsolete) To make thin, to waste.^[9][2]
4. (figurative, dated, literary) To lessen greatly, to attenuate.^[9][7]

Word family

• exténuant

Related words

• exténuation
• ténu
• atténuer
• Latin extenuō

References

1. ^ a b c 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. ^ 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
4. ^ a b Rey, Alain, ed. (2005), Le Grand Robert de la langue française, electronic version, Paris: Le Robert
5. ^ a b c Bloch, Oscar; Wartburg, Walther von (1989), Dictionnaire étymologique de la langue française, 8th ed., Paris: Presses universitaires de France
6. ^ Wartburg, Walther von, et al. (1922–2002), Französisches Etymologisches Wörterbuch, 25 vols., Bonn / Leipzig / Basel: Klopp / Teubner / Zbinden, p. 13/1, 231b
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. ^ a b Littré, Émile (1873–1877), Dictionnaire de la langue française, 4 vols. and supplement, Paris: Hachette
9. ^ a b c d Rey-Debove, Josette; Rey, Alain, eds. (2007), Le Petit Robert de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
10. ^ Dictionnaire de français Larousse, larousse.fr/dictionnaires/francais (accessed 2024)