Etymology and origin of the French word manucure
manucure1 manicurist
Etymology tree of manucure1
From the same root · manucure1
Forms
manucure m or f (plural manucures)[1]
Etymology
The word for the manicurist is a French coinage, from Latin manus (“hand”) + cūrō (“to take care of”), made on the model of pédicure, whose second element comes from that Latin verb.[2][3][4][5] An earlier form, manicure (1869, Sainte-Beuve), took its vowel from that model and did not last.[2][3][4] Picoche lists both words among the French compounds of -cure in the family of Latin cūra (“care”).[6]
Earliest recorded meaning
It is first found in 1877 in Alphonse Daudet's Le Nabab, in a list of trades: masseur, pédicure, manucure, for a person whose job is to care for the hands and nails.[2] The same year Littré's Supplement recorded manicure ou manucure.[4]
Semantic evolution
The word names the person who gives cosmetic care to the hands and nails, especially in a hairdresser's or a beauty salon; it is used of a man or a woman.[3][5][1] From it French formed the verb manucurer: the reflexive se manucurer is found in 1946 (Cendrars), and in 1949 Hanse still called the verb not French; a form manicurer appears as early as 1898 (Paul Bourget).[2] Rey dates the verb to about 1960, and manucurie “the trade of a manicurist” to about 1970.[3]
English manicure is recorded in 1873 for one who treats hands and nails professionally, and comes from the French word.[7]
Timeline
- 1869 – Sainte-Beuve uses the form manicure.[2][4]
- 1877 – Manucure appears in Daudet's Le Nabab.[2]
- 1877 – Littré's Supplement records manicure ou manucure.[4]
- 1946 – Se manucurer is first recorded.[2]
Meanings
Noun
- A manicurist, a person who cares for the hands and nails, usually in a hair salon or beauty salon: la manucure du salon m'a limé les ongles.[2][5][1]
Word family
- manucurer
- manucurie
manucure2 manicure
Forms
manucure f (plural manucures)[1]
Etymology
The word for the care of the hands is a back-formation: it is from French manucurer, the verb formed on manucure1.[4][5][3] Rey suggests that the English noun manicure, used in this sense since 1887, may have helped it along.[3][2] The GLLF instead derives it directly from Latin manus (“hand”) and cūrō (“to take care of”).[8]
Earliest recorded meaning
It is first found in 1967 in Louis Aragon's Blanche ou l'oubli, as a masculine noun: Dommage qu'on n'ait pas des hommes pour le manucure (“a pity there are no men for the manicure”).[2][4]
Semantic evolution
The noun names the set of cosmetic treatments given to the hands and nails, and also the technique and trade of the manicurist.[2][5] The TLFi and the GLLF give it as masculine, while the Petit Robert and Wiktionary treat it as feminine or masculine.[2][8][5][1]
Timeline
Meanings
Noun
Related words
References
- ^ a b c d e f Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
- ^ 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
- ^ a b c d e f Rey, Alain, ed. (1992), Dictionnaire historique de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
- ^ a b c d e f g h Rey, Alain, ed. (2005), Le Grand Robert de la langue française, electronic version, Paris: Le Robert
- ^ a b c d e f g h Rey-Debove, Josette; Rey, Alain, eds. (2007), Le Petit Robert de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
- ^ Picoche, Jacqueline (1991), Dictionnaire étymologique du français, Paris: Le Robert (Les Usuels du Robert)
- ^ Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
- ^ a b c Guilbert, Louis; Lagane, René; Niobey, Georges, eds. (1971–1978; 1989), Grand Larousse de la langue française, Paris: Larousse
Related etymologies
Cite this entry
“Manucure.” Etymologically, 15 Nov. 2026, etymologically.com/fr/manucure. Accessed 15 Nov. 2026.
Last edited on . ·