froment

Forms

froment m (plural froments)^[1] Old French furment, froument, frommant (about 1268); froment from the 14th century.^[2][3][4] Anglo-Norman also has forment and frument.^[5]

Etymology

It is inherited from Old French furment, inherited from Latin frūmentum (“grain, corn, wheat”),^[6][2][7][8] through a spoken form without the long vowel.^[1] The Latin word was a general term for all cereals with ears, and especially wheat; it belongs to the family of fruor (“to enjoy”), like frūctus (see fruit), and is linked in sense with frūgēs (“produce of the earth”).^[2][3][9]

Cognate with Italian frumento, Occitan fromen and Spanish frumento.^[10][9]

Earliest recorded meaning

Philippe de Thaon's Bestiaire (1121–1134) speaks of grains de furment, “grains of wheat”.^[6]

Semantic evolution

In Old French froment named the best kind of wheat, and wheat in general from the mid-16th century (Amyot);^[4] the sense “grain of wheat” dates from 1342.^[2][4] The old Latin sense “any cereal” survives in the south-west.^[10] Today the word belongs to farming vocabulary, beside the everyday blé.^[2]

From 1872 it is found in the names of various grasses, and in the early 20th century it was used as an adjective for the blond colour of some cattle.^[2]

Timeline

• 1121–1134 – Grains de furment in Philippe de Thaon's Bestiaire.^[6]
• c. 1268 – The form frommant in the Livre des métiers.^[4][9]
• 13th century – The derivative fromentée “wheat porridge”.^[8][2]
• 1342 – Bruyant uses it for the grain of wheat.^[4]
• 14th century – The spelling froment appears.^[2][3]
• 1872 – The Larousse records it in names of grasses.^[4]

Meanings

Noun

1. (agriculture) Wheat, especially common wheat.^[11][1]
2. The grain of wheat: farine de froment.^[11][9]
3. In the names of various grasses and cereals: froment d'Inde (maize).^[6][2]
4. (dated, except in Switzerland) Any cereal.^[1]

Adjective

1. (invariable) Of the blond colour of some cattle coats: robe froment.^[11][2]

Word family

• fromentée
• fromental
• fromentacée

Related words

• frumentaire
• fruit
• Latin frūmentum

References

1. ^ a b c d e Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Rey, Alain, ed. (1992), Dictionnaire historique de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
3. ^ a b c Rey, Alain, ed. (2005), Le Grand Robert de la langue française, electronic version, Paris: Le Robert
4. ^ a b c d e f Guilbert, Louis; Lagane, René; Niobey, Georges, eds. (1971–1978; 1989), Grand Larousse de la langue française, Paris: Larousse
5. ^ Anglo-Norman Dictionary (AND2), Aberystwyth University, anglo-norman.net (2nd ed., 2005–)
6. ^ 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
7. ^ Wartburg, Walther von, et al. (1922–2002), Französisches Etymologisches Wörterbuch, 25 vols., Bonn / Leipzig / Basel: Klopp / Teubner / Zbinden, p. 3, 828a
8. ^ a b Bloch, Oscar; Wartburg, Walther von (1989), Dictionnaire étymologique de la langue française, 8th ed., Paris: Presses universitaires de France
9. ^ a b c d Littré, Émile (1873–1877), Dictionnaire de la langue française, 4 vols. and supplement, Paris: Hachette
10. ^ a b Meyer-Lübke, Wilhelm (1935), Romanisches etymologisches Wörterbuch, 3rd ed., Heidelberg: Winter
11. ^ a b c Rey-Debove, Josette; Rey, Alain, eds. (2007), Le Petit Robert de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert