insistance

Forms

insistance f (plural insistances)^[1]

Etymology

It is formed from French insister + -ance, from the present participle of the verb.^[2][3][1] The verb is from Latin īnsistō (“to stand on, press on”), recorded in French from 1336.^[4]

Earliest recorded meaning

It is first recorded on 28 June 1556 in the state papers of Cardinal Granvelle, in the phrase troys points dont j'avois faict insistance “three points on which I had insisted”.^[2][5]

Semantic evolution

The word was rare after the early 17th century: the GLLF notes a gap between Oudin (1640) and 1801, and Bloch and Wartburg date the older uses from 1556 to 1626.^[5][4] It came back with Louis-Sébastien Mercier, whom Littré credits with introducing it.^[6][3] In rhetoric it named a figure of dwelling on one argument.^[6]

In the 20th century phonetics took it up for the accent d'insistance, an emphatic stress expressing emotion or contrast.^[5][7][8] In everyday use it is common in adverbial phrases such as avec insistance.^[7]

Timeline

• 1556 – First recorded in the papers of Cardinal Granvelle.^[2]
• 1640 – Oudin records it; it is then rare until 1801.^[5]
• 1801 – Mercier brings the word back into use.^[4][6]
• 20th century – Phonetics uses accent d'insistance.^[5]

Meanings

Noun

1. The act of insisting, insistence, persistence: demander une faveur avec insistance.^[9][8][10]
2. Regarder quelqu'un avec insistance: to stare at someone.^[9][5]
3. (phonetics) Accent d'insistance: emphatic stress that draws attention to a syllable or word.^[8][9][5]
4. The fact of recurring regularly: l'insistance d'un motif musical.^[9]

Related words

• insister
• insistant

References

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