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liqueur

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Etymology and origin of the French word liqueur

Confidence
Established
Formation
Borrowing
First attested
c. 1160 Eneas More words from the 12th century
Borrowed from
Latin liquor
Ultimate origin
Latin liqueō
Etymology tree
inherited borrowed derived
Latin liqueō
Latin līquor
French liqueur
English liqueur
From the same root
Latin liquefaciō ← liqueō
Latin liquēscō ← liqueō
Latin liquidus ← liqueō

Pronunciation

Forms

liqueur f (plural liqueurs)[1] Old French licur (about 1160), likeur (1256) and liqueur (about 1283, Beaumanoir).[2] Anglo-Norman spellings include licor, licour and liquour.[3]

Etymology

It is borrowed from Latin liquor (“fluidity, liquid”).[4][5][6][7][8] The Latin noun comes from liqueō (“to be liquid, be clear”),[2][9] or, according to Rey, from liquō (“to make clear or liquid, to strain”), a verb of state that he connects with the root of linquō (“to leave”).[6]

Cognate with Italian liquore, Romanian lichior, and Occitan licor, Catalan licor, Spanish licor and Portuguese licor.[9][10] Its family includes liquide, liquidité, liquéfier and délayer.[9][6]

Earliest recorded meaning

It is first recorded in the Roman d'Eneas about 1160, meaning a liquid substance.[4][6]

Semantic evolution

The general sense “liquid substance” lasted, according to Bloch and Wartburg, until the 17th century, and was still found in Chateaubriand and in the Académie's dictionary of 1878.[7][6] It gave way to specialized uses: a solution used in pharmacy (1635, Corneille) and a fluid of the body (1682, La Fontaine), as in liqueur séminale.[4][6]

From the 14th century it was used of drink: in 1372 Eustache Deschamps speaks of vin de grant liqueur, the strength and sweetness of a wine.[4][10] Through vin de liqueur (1674, Madame de Sévigné) it came to name a sweet, flavoured drink made with brandy or spirits (1680, Richelet), and in the early 18th century also the sweet soft drinks sold by lemonade-sellers.[4][6] The common modern sense comes from liqueur spiritueuse or liqueur forte, strong in alcohol (Encyclopédie, 1765); in the 19th century liqueurs were drunk with coffee, as digestifs.[6]

In Quebec, from 1664, liqueur covered any alcoholic drink and then especially spirits such as whisky, rum and gin, under the influence of English liquor.[11][12] The old French sense “refreshing soft drink” widened there to fizzy drinks;[12] liqueur douce for a soft drink is recorded from 1905.[12]

English borrowed the word in 1729 for a sweetened, flavoured spirit;[13] liquor is the same word taken earlier from Old French.[13]

Timeline

  • c. 1160 – The Roman d'Eneas uses licur for a liquid.[4][2]
  • 1372 – Eustache Deschamps writes vin de grant liqueur.[4]
  • 1635 – Corneille uses it for a solution used in pharmacy.[4]
  • 1664 – A Quebec judgment uses it for alcoholic drinks in general.[12]
  • 1674 – Madame de Sévigné uses vin de liqueur.[4]
  • 1680 – Richelet records it for a sweet, flavoured spirit.[4]
  • 1682 – La Fontaine uses it for a fluid of the body.[4]
  • 1729 – English borrows it for a sweetened spirit.[13]
  • 1765 – The Encyclopédie has liqueur forte, a drink strong in alcohol.[6]

Meanings

Noun

  1. A liqueur, a sweet, flavoured drink made with eau-de-vie or alcohol: une liqueur de framboise.[9][4][1]
  2. Vin de liqueur: a sweet, strong dessert wine.[4][10]
  3. (chemistry, pharmacy) A solution used in pharmacy or industry, as in liqueur de Fehling.[9][4]
  4. (dated) Any liquid substance, and especially a fluid of the body, as in liqueur séminale.[9][4][1]
  5. (Quebec) A soft drink, a fizzy drink.[12][1]
  6. (Quebec, dated) Any alcoholic drink, especially spirits.[12]

Word family

  • liquoreux
  • liquoriste

References

  1. ^ a b c d e Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c Guilbert, Louis; Lagane, René; Niobey, Georges, eds. (1971–1978; 1989), Grand Larousse de la langue française, Paris: Larousse
  3. ^ Anglo-Norman Dictionary (AND2), Aberystwyth University, anglo-norman.net (2nd ed., 2005–)
  4. ^ 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
  5. ^ Wartburg, Walther von, et al. (1922–2002), Französisches Etymologisches Wörterbuch, 25 vols., Bonn / Leipzig / Basel: Klopp / Teubner / Zbinden, p. 5, 371b
  6. ^ a b c d e f g h i Rey, Alain, ed. (1992), Dictionnaire historique de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
  7. ^ a b Bloch, Oscar; Wartburg, Walther von (1989), Dictionnaire étymologique de la langue française, 8th ed., Paris: Presses universitaires de France
  8. ^ Rey, Alain, ed. (2005), Le Grand Robert de la langue française, electronic version, Paris: Le Robert
  9. ^ a b c d e f Rey-Debove, Josette; Rey, Alain, eds. (2007), Le Petit Robert de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
  10. ^ a b c Littré, Émile (1873–1877), Dictionnaire de la langue française, 4 vols. and supplement, Paris: Hachette
  11. ^ Poirier, Claude, et al. (2024), Dictionnaire historique du français québécois, 2nd ed., Trésor de la langue française au Québec, Université Laval, dhfq.org
  12. ^ a b c d e f Base de données lexicographiques panfrancophone (BDLP), Trésor de la langue française au Québec / Agence universitaire de la Francophonie, bdlp.org
  13. ^ a b c Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com

Related etymologies

Cite this entry

“Liqueur.” Etymologically, 14 Nov. 2026, etymologically.com/fr/liqueur. Accessed 15 Nov. 2026.

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