Etymologically
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gâchette

Etymology and origin of the French word gâchette

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Confidence
Established
Formation
Derivation
First attested
1478
Ultimate origin
Frankish (*gaspia)
Etymology tree
inherited borrowed derived
French gâchette
English gadget

Pronunciation

  • IPA: /ɡa.ʃɛt/[1]
  • IPA: /ɡɑ.ʃɛt/[1]

Forms

gâchette f (plural gâchettes)[1] Earlier glachette (1478), guaschette, gaschette (about 1560, Paré); the spelling gâchette dates from 1676.[2][3][4]

Etymology

It is from French gâche + -ette, a diminutive of gâche, the metal plate into which the bolt of a lock engages.[2][5][6] Gâche is from Frankish *gaspia (“buckle, clasp”), reconstructed from Middle Dutch gespe (“buckle, hook”).[2][6] Wiktionary compares Dutch gesp and Low German gespe.[1]

Earliest recorded meaning

It is first recorded as glachette in 1478, in the statutes of the locksmiths, for a part of a lock: a notched metal piece set under the bolt to stop it at each turn of the key.[2][7][3]

Semantic evolution

By analogy it was applied in 1762, in the Encyclopédie, to the part of a firearm that holds the hammer or striker and releases it when the trigger is pulled.[2][4] In the 19th century it came to be used for the détente itself, the trigger, an extension long criticized, as in appuyer sur la gâchette “to pull the trigger”; by metonymy it also names a marksman (la meilleure gâchette de l'Ouest).[4][7][8] In electronics it is the control electrode of some semiconductor devices.[7]

Timeline

  • 1478 – Glachette appears in the locksmiths' statutes.[2]
  • c. 1560 – Paré writes gaschettes.[3][9]
  • 1676 – Félibien has the spelling gâchette.[3][4]
  • 1762 – The Encyclopédie uses it for the sear of a firearm.[2][3]

Meanings

Noun

  1. (locksmithing) A notched metal piece under the bolt of a lock that stops it at each turn of the key.[7][3]
  2. (firearms) The sear, the part that holds the striker or hammer until the trigger is pulled.[7][8]
  3. (common, loosely) The trigger: appuyer sur la gâchette.[7][8]
  4. (familiar) A marksman, a shot: une fine gâchette.[7][8]
  5. (electronics) The gate electrode of some semiconductor devices.[7][8]
  • gâche
  • détente
  • Frankish *gaspia

Usage notes

Avoir la gâchette facile means to be too quick to shoot.[8][1]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f g 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 Guilbert, Louis; Lagane, René; Niobey, Georges, eds. (1971–1978; 1989), Grand Larousse de la langue française, Paris: Larousse
  4. ^ a b c d Rey, Alain, ed. (1992), Dictionnaire historique de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
  5. ^ Rey, Alain, ed. (2005), Le Grand Robert de la langue française, electronic version, Paris: Le Robert
  6. ^ a b Bloch, Oscar; Wartburg, Walther von (1989), Dictionnaire étymologique de la langue française, 8th ed., Paris: Presses universitaires de France
  7. ^ a b c d e f g h Rey-Debove, Josette; Rey, Alain, eds. (2007), Le Petit Robert de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
  8. ^ a b c d e f Dictionnaire de français Larousse, larousse.fr/dictionnaires/francais (accessed 2024)
  9. ^ Littré, Émile (1873–1877), Dictionnaire de la langue française, 4 vols. and supplement, Paris: Hachette

Borrowed into

Cite this entry

“Gâchette.” Etymologically, 18 Oct. 2026, etymologically.com/fr/g%C3%A2chette. Accessed 18 Oct. 2026.

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