hypnose

Forms

hypnose f (plural hypnoses)^[1]

Etymology

According to the TLFi it is formed from French hypnotique + -ose, on the stem of the adjective.^[2] The Grand Robert, the Petit Robert and the GLLF instead derive it from Greek ὑπνόω (hupnóō, “to put to sleep”), the Grand Robert and Petit Robert allowing either source, and the Petit Robert says it came through English; it came after hypnotisme, itself taken from English.^[3][4][5] All lead back to ὕπνος (húpnos, “sleep”).^[5][1][6]

The adjective it is formed on comes from Late Latin hypnōticus, from ὑπνωτικός (hupnōtikós, “sleep-inducing”).^[2][7][1]

Earliest recorded meaning

Rey dates it to 1862, when Danjais used hypnose to tell the induced state apart from the process that brings it on and the phenomena that go with it, called hypnotisme.^[8] The Grand Robert gives the same year and writer, but for “sleeping sickness”.^[3] The TLFi's first record of the medical sense is the Larousse of 1873, and Bloch and Wartburg date it to 1877.^[2][7]

Semantic evolution

The word took its place in the vocabulary of experimental psychology in the late 19th century, beside hypnotisme and hypnotiser, when Charcot and Janet were at work.^[8] By analogy it came to mean a dazed state of fascination or astonishment (1895, Jean Lorrain), and figuratively an enchantment or spell, as when Claudel speaks of a poet producing l'hypnose.^[2][5][4]

Timeline

• 1862 – Danjais uses hypnose.^[8][3]
• 1873 – The Larousse records it as a medical term.^[2][3]
• 1895 – Jean Lorrain uses it for a dazed state of fascination.^[2]

Meanings

Noun

1. A state close to sleep brought on by suggestion or by drugs, hypnosis: être sous hypnose.^[4][9]
2. (by extension) A state of numbness or loss of will that recalls hypnosis, a trance: un public en état d'hypnose.^[4][5]

Related words

• hypnotique
• hypnotisme
• hypnotiser
• hypnotiseur
• Ancient Greek ὕπνος (húpnos)

References

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