imbu

Forms

imbu (feminine imbue, masculine plural imbus, feminine plural imbues)^[1] Middle French imbeü, imbeu and imbut.^[2][3]

Etymology

It is from French embu, the past participle of emboire, remade in the 15th century after Latin imbūtus (“soaked, imbued”), the past participle of imbuō (“to soak, imbue”).^{[2][3][4][5][6]} That verb is from Latin imbibō (“to drink in”).^[2] Rey notes that the Latin verb was used of physical and moral imbuing and has no known origin.^[3]

The verb imboire was remade on this adjective, and a verb imbuer (“to imbue, to instruct”) was borrowed about 1500.^[3][4]

Earliest recorded meaning

The first record, in a 15th-century commentary on the Ovide moralisé, is figurative: imbeü de la Sainte trinité, “imbued with the Holy Trinity”.^[2] In 1438 imbeu de vin means soaked with wine.^[2][3]

Semantic evolution

Both senses, “soaked with a liquid” and “imbued with ideas or feelings”, were current in classical French, the second recorded in 1507 as de vertues imbut.^[2][7] The GLLF dates its first use, in Chastellain about 1460, to a liquid poured into a vessel.^[7] The concrete sense is now old or literary.^[2][7]

The figurative sense, said of people, became the usual one, and être imbu de soi-même “to think oneself better than others” appeared in the early 20th century.^[3][8] In the painting of buildings Littré also records a noun imbu, the same as embu.^[9]

Timeline

• 15th century – Imbeü in the figurative sense, in a commentary on the Ovide moralisé.^[2]
• 1438 – Imbeu de vin “soaked with wine”.^[2][3]
• c. 1460 – Chastellain uses it of a liquid poured into a vessel.^[7][4]
• 1507 – De vertues imbut, in N. de La Chesnaye.^[2][7]
• early 20th century – Être imbu de soi-même is recorded.^[3]

Meanings

Adjective

1. Deeply imbued with feelings, ideas or prejudices: un vieux juge imbu de ses principes.^[8][10][2]
2. Être imbu de soi-même: to be conceited, to think oneself above others.^[8][10][3]
3. (literary, dated) Soaked or impregnated with a liquid.^[2][7][9]

Related words

• embu
• emboire
• imboire
• Latin imbuō

References

1. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l 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 g h i Rey, Alain, ed. (1992), Dictionnaire historique de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
4. ^ a b c Bloch, Oscar; Wartburg, Walther von (1989), Dictionnaire étymologique de la langue française, 8th ed., Paris: Presses universitaires de France
5. ^ Rey, Alain, ed. (2005), Le Grand Robert de la langue française, electronic version, Paris: Le Robert
6. ^ Wartburg, Walther von, et al. (1922–2002), Französisches Etymologisches Wörterbuch, 25 vols., Bonn / Leipzig / Basel: Klopp / Teubner / Zbinden, p. 4, 568b
7. ^ a b c d e f 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
9. ^ a b Littré, Émile (1873–1877), Dictionnaire de la langue française, 4 vols. and supplement, Paris: Hachette
10. ^ a b Dictionnaire Le Robert en ligne, dictionnaire.lerobert.com (accessed 2024)