Etymologically
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marié

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Pronunciation

  • IPA: /ma.ʁje/[1]

Forms

marié (feminine mariée, masculine plural mariés, feminine plural mariées)[1]

Etymology

Used as an adjective and a noun, it is the past participle from French marier (“to marry”).[2][3][4][5]

Earliest recorded meaning

Wace uses it about 1145, in his Conception Nostre Dame, for a person joined by marriage.[2]

Semantic evolution

As a noun, a person who has married, especially on the wedding day itself, it is found in the 14th century;[2] the GLLF dates the noun to about 1190.[4] Robert Estienne records nouveau marié and nouvelle mariée in 1538, and Balzac has jeune marié in 1842.[4] Oudin records the saying se plaindre que la mariée est trop belle, to complain of something one should be glad of, in 1640.[4]

By likeness it was applied to things that go together: Corneille has rimes mariées for rhymes in couplets (1650), and Molière uses it of things in harmony (1670).[2][4]

Timeline

  • c. 1145 – Adjective “married”, in Wace.[2]
  • 14th century – Noun “a married person, a bride or bridegroom”.[2]
  • 1538 – Nouveau marié, nouvelle mariée, in Robert Estienne.[4]
  • 1640 – Se plaindre que la mariée est trop belle, in Oudin.[4]
  • 1650 – Rimes mariées, in Corneille.[2]
  • 1670 – Of things in harmony, in Molière.[2]

Meanings

Adjective

  1. Married: un homme marié, une femme mariée.[5][6]
  2. (of things) Well matched, in harmony.[2][4]

Noun

  1. A person who has recently married: les jeunes mariés, the newly-weds.[5][6]
  2. A bridegroom, la mariée, the bride: robe de mariée.[5][6]
  3. Se plaindre que la mariée est trop belle: to complain about something one should be glad of.[5][4]

References

  1. ^ a b Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i 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. ^ Rey, Alain, ed. (2005), Le Grand Robert de la langue française, electronic version, Paris: Le Robert
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h i Guilbert, Louis; Lagane, René; Niobey, Georges, eds. (1971–1978; 1989), Grand Larousse de la langue française, Paris: Larousse
  5. ^ a b c d e Rey-Debove, Josette; Rey, Alain, eds. (2007), Le Petit Robert de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
  6. ^ a b c Dictionnaire Le Robert en ligne, dictionnaire.lerobert.com (accessed 2024)