grec

Pronunciation

• IPA: /ɡʁɛk/^[1]

Forms

grec (feminine grecque, masculine plural grecs, feminine plural grecques)^[1]

Etymology

It is borrowed from Latin Graecus (“Greek”), from Ancient Greek Γραικός (Graikós).^[2][3][1][4] The Greek word is very rare in Greek literature, where the usual name is Ἕλλην (Héllēn); it is probably a foreign word, perhaps Illyrian, that passed early into Latin through Etruscan.^[2] Littré says it was the name of one Hellenic people that the Romans gave to the whole nation.^[5]

The learned form replaced those that came from the Latin word by sound change: griu, griois, grézois, which survives in grégeois, and griesche, which survives in grièche.^[2][1][6] The feminine spelling ⟨grecque⟩, instead of ⟨grèque⟩, reflects an older spelling habit, as in becquée and socque.^[1]

Earliest recorded meaning

Benoît de Sainte-Maure's Roman de Troie (about 1165) uses it as an adjective, of the Greek language.^[3][2]

Semantic evolution

As a noun it named an inhabitant of Greece (Villehardouin, about 1208: li Franc et li Grec), and, from 1512 the Greek language.^[3] In the 16th century un grec was a Hellenist (1527), whence the figurative senses “learned” (1640) and “skilled, knowing” (1651).^[3][2] The sense “cunning, skilled at deceiving” (1578) alludes to the old reputation of the Greeks for trickery, and gave the 18th- and 19th-century sense of a cardsharp (1721).^[2][3]

Phrases include à la grecque (1584), calendes grecques (Rabelais), never, and profil grec (Sand, 1833).^[3][7] C'est du grec means “it's double Dutch”.^[8] In recent slang un grec is a kebab sandwich.^[1]

Timeline

• c. 1165 – The adjective, in Benoît de Sainte-Maure.^[3]
• c. 1208 – The noun, “a Greek”, in Villehardouin.^[3]
• 1512 – Le grec, the language.^[3]
• 1527 – “A Hellenist”.^[3][2]
• 1578 – “Cunning, deceitful”.^[3][2]
• 1584 – À la grecque.^[3]
• 1721 – “A cardsharp”.^[2]

Meanings

Adjective

1. Greek, of Greece, ancient or modern: les îles grecques, la mythologie grecque.^[8][1]
2. Profil grec, nez grec: with the nose in line with the forehead.^[8][3]
3. Croix grecque: a cross with four equal arms, calendes grecques: never.^[7]

Noun

1. Grec: a Greek, an inhabitant of Greece.^[1][3]
2. Le grec: the Greek language, ancient or modern: grec ancien, grec moderne.^[1]
3. (dated) A cardsharp.^[2][3]
4. (slang) A kebab sandwich.^[1]

Related words

• grégeois
• grecque
• Latin Graecus

References

1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j 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 d e f g h i j k l m n o 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
4. ^ Wartburg, Walther von, et al. (1922–2002), Französisches Etymologisches Wörterbuch, 25 vols., Bonn / Leipzig / Basel: Klopp / Teubner / Zbinden, p. 4, 210a
5. ^ Littré, Émile (1873–1877), Dictionnaire de la langue française, 4 vols. and supplement, Paris: Hachette
6. ^ Rey, Alain, ed. (2005), Le Grand Robert de la langue française, electronic version, Paris: Le Robert
7. ^ a b Guilbert, Louis; Lagane, René; Niobey, Georges, eds. (1971–1978; 1989), Grand Larousse de la langue française, Paris: Larousse
8. ^ a b c Rey-Debove, Josette; Rey, Alain, eds. (2007), Le Petit Robert de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert