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grappe

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Etymology and origin of the French word grappe

Confidence
Probable
Formation
Borrowing
First attested
1121–1134 Philippe de Thaon, Bestiaire More words from the 12th century
Borrowed from
Frankish *krappa via Old French
Ultimate origin
Frankish *krappa

Pronunciation

Forms

grappe f (plural grappes)[1] Old French grape and crape; the spelling grappe dates from the 16th century.[2][3][4]

Etymology

It is inherited from Old French grape, borrowed from Frankish *krappa (“hook”).[5][6][3][7] The Frankish word is reconstructed from Middle Dutch crappe and Old French crape (“clasp”), beside Middle High German krapfe (“hook”);[5][6] Bloch and Wartburg compare German Krapfen.[8] The bunch of grapes was named from its hook-like shape.[5][8][6] The Gros Larousse suggests the word first meant the stalk stripped of its grapes.[2] Wiktionary instead derives it from the verb graper (“to pick grapes”).[1]

Cognate with Old Occitan grapa, Spanish grapa and Italian grappa, all meaning “hook”.[8]

Earliest recorded meaning

It is first found as grape in Philippe de Thaon's Bestiaire (1121–1134), meaning a bunch of grapes.[5][7] A 12th-century psalter quoted by Littré has E le sanc de grape beust très cler (“and drank the very clear blood of the grape”).[4][2]

Semantic evolution

The original sense “hook” survived only in technical uses: a hook (1213), a metal collar set with points behind the head of a jousting lance (1385), and an ice crampon fixed to a horseshoe (1625), now out of use, its place taken by grappin.[5][6] The verb grapper “to pick grapes” was ousted by its own derivative grappiller.[6]

From 1558, translating the Latin uva maris, grappe named a close cluster of small objects, and later of people.[5][6] Mordre à la grappe “to be delighted with an idea” is recorded by Cotgrave in 1611.[9][4] In slang the word can suggest the testicles, and with the influence of grappin gave the familiar lâcher la grappe à quelqu'un “to leave someone alone”.[6][7]

Timeline

  • 1121–1134 – Grape “bunch of grapes” appears in Philippe de Thaon's Bestiaire.[5]
  • 1213 – The Faits des Romains uses it for a hook.[5][6]
  • 1385 – It names a collar with points on a jousting lance.[5]
  • 1558 – First used for a cluster of small objects.[5][6]
  • 1584 – The diminutive grappillon is recorded.[8]
  • 1611 – Cotgrave records mordre à la grappe.[9]
  • 1625 – It names an ice crampon on a horseshoe.[5]
  • 1866 – Littré records the botanical sense “raceme”.[2]

Meanings

Noun

  1. A cluster of flowers or fruits borne on stalks along a common axis; in botany, a raceme: une grappe de glycine.[7][10][5]
  2. A bunch of grapes: une grappe de raisin.[7][10]
  3. A tight cluster of small things or of people: des grappes de curieux.[7][10][5]
  4. (vulgar) The male genitals.[7] Lâche-moi la grappe: leave me alone.[7][6]

Word family

  • grappiller
  • grappillage
  • égrapper
  • grappillon
  • grappilleur
  • grappin
  • Frankish *krappa

Usage notes

The Grand Robert has a separate grappe (1549), a soft growth on the lower leg of horses and, in old technical use, small stones mixed with an ore, altered after this word from crape (1393), probably from Middle French escraper “to scrape”;[3] Littré also lists grappe, a sugar-cane liquor, from Spanish guarapo.[4]

References

  1. ^ a b c Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d Guilbert, Louis; Lagane, René; Niobey, Georges, eds. (1971–1978; 1989), Grand Larousse de la langue française, Paris: Larousse
  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 Littré, Émile (1873–1877), Dictionnaire de la langue française, 4 vols. and supplement, Paris: Hachette
  5. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m 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
  6. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Rey, Alain, ed. (1992), Dictionnaire historique de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
  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 Bloch, Oscar; Wartburg, Walther von (1989), Dictionnaire étymologique de la langue française, 8th ed., Paris: Presses universitaires de France
  9. ^ a b Quemada, Bernard, ed. (1959–2006), Datations et documents lexicographiques (Base historique du vocabulaire français, BHVF), Paris: Klincksieck / CNRS / Champion; ATILF
  10. ^ a b c Dictionnaire de français Larousse, larousse.fr/dictionnaires/francais (accessed 2024)

Related etymologies

Cite this entry

“Grappe.” Etymologically, 14 Nov. 2026, etymologically.com/fr/grappe. Accessed 15 Nov. 2026.

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