Etymologically
Log in

légèrement

This is the current revision of this entry, as edited by bogdan on 22 October 2026 at 03:55. This address is a permanent link to this version.
Changes in this edit History

Pronunciation

  • /le.ʒɛʁ.mɑ̃/[1]

Forms

légèrement[1] Old French legierement, ligierement;[2][3] légèrement from the 14th century.[2][3]

Etymology

It is formed from French légère + -ment, from the feminine of léger.[3][1][4] The adjective is *leviārius, derived from Latin levis (“light”).[5]

Cognate with Old Occitan leugieramen, Spanish ligeramente and Italian leggermente.[4]

Earliest recorded meaning

It is first found in the early 12th century in the senses “without grief” (Grant mal fist Adam) and “easily, without difficulty” (Couronnement de Louis, about 1131–1135).[3][2]

Semantic evolution

The sense “easily” lasted through Old and Middle French (12th–15th century), as did “quickly” (about 1360 to about 1600).[6] Villehardouin wrote of men ligierement armé “lightly armed” (about 1208),[3] and, from the end of the 15th century the adverb described a light, nimble movement of the body.[3][6] Mengier legierement “to eat lightly” is recorded in 1340.[3]

The abstract sense “thoughtlessly” appears at the end of the 15th century in Commynes,[3][6] and in 1692 Callières noted it as a pejorative “superficially”.[3] Its common modern sense “slightly, a little” goes back to the end of the 15th century.[6]

Timeline

  • c. 1131 – Legierement “easily” in the Couronnement de Louis.[2]
  • c. 1208 – Villehardouin's ligierement armé.[3]
  • 1314 – Henri de Mondeville uses it for “quickly”.[3]
  • 1340 – Mengier legierement “to eat lightly”.[3]
  • 14th century – The spelling légèrement.[2]
  • Late 15th century – Commynes uses it for “thoughtlessly”.[3]
  • 1692 – Callières notes it as “superficially”.[3]

Meanings

Adverb

  1. lightly, without weight or pressure: toucher légèrement.[7][1]
  2. With agility and grace: marcher légèrement.[7][4]
  3. In light clothing: être vêtu légèrement.[7][2]
  4. Without excess: dîner légèrement.[7][2]
  5. slightly, a little: légèrement blessé.[7][1]
  6. Thoughtlessly, without due care: agir légèrement.[7][2]

Usage notes

Littré notes that légèrement was sometimes used ironically for “strongly”.[4]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h Guilbert, Louis; Lagane, René; Niobey, Georges, eds. (1971–1978; 1989), Grand Larousse de la langue française, Paris: Larousse
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n 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. ^ a b c d Littré, Émile (1873–1877), Dictionnaire de la langue française, 4 vols. and supplement, Paris: Hachette
  5. ^ Bloch, Oscar; Wartburg, Walther von (1989), Dictionnaire étymologique de la langue française, 8th ed., Paris: Presses universitaires de France
  6. ^ a b c d Rey, Alain, ed. (1992), Dictionnaire historique de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
  7. ^ a b c d e f Rey-Debove, Josette; Rey, Alain, eds. (2007), Le Petit Robert de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert