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mince

Etymology and origin of the French word mince

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Confidence
Probable
Formation
Back-formation
First attested
1306, Guillaume Guiart, Branche des royaus lignages
Ultimate origin
Latin (minutus)

Pronunciation

  • IPA: /mɛ̃s/[1]

Forms

mince (plural minces)[1]

Etymology

It is a deverbal formation from the old verb mincier (“to cut into small pieces”), later mincer,[2][3][4] which Bloch and Wartburg describe as an infinitive older than menuiser, before that verb was remade on its stressed forms.[5] Rey traces it to Vulgar Latin *minūtiō (“to make small”), an altered form of Late Latin minūtō (5th–6th centuries), from Latin minūtus (“small”), the source of menu.[3][6] In Old French the verb was mostly a cooking word; outside the regions it gave way to émincer.[3] For the first sense, a small coin, the TLFi compares Medieval Latin minutum and minuta “small coin” (14th century).[2]

Other explanations exist.[7][1] Littré thought the origin uncertain and rejected both Diez's derivation from Old High German minnisto (“smallest”) and a link with Latin mancus (“maimed”).[7] Wiktionary derives the verb from Frankish *minnistō (“smaller, finer”) or *minnisōn (“to make smaller”).[1] Romance relatives of the Vulgar Latin verb include Italian minuzzare and Old Spanish menuzar.[5][6]

Earliest recorded meaning

Guillaume Guiart uses mince in 1306 as a noun for a small coin worth half a denier;[2][4] the word still meant “money” in 16th-century slang.[2][3]

Semantic evolution

The adjective drawn from the noun meant “penniless, wretched” about 1460–1480 (Villon, Coquillart).[2][4][8] Only in the 16th century did it take the concrete sense “having little thickness” (early 16th century) and, of a body, “slender” (1560, in a Bible printed by Antoine Rebul);[2][3] Rey suggests that a pièce mince could be both a coin of little value and a thin one.[3] From before 1646 it was used of abstract things of little importance (Maynard: Vostre noblesse est mince),[2][3] and in classical French also of a person deserving little consideration (1652).[3]

The interjection mince ! “drat!” is recorded in 1881 (Richepin);[2] Rey derives it probably from slang mince que… (1878) and the ironic mince de… “plenty of…”, an intensive like sacré, though he calls the development unclear.[3] Wiktionary instead takes it as a minced oath standing for merde.[1] The noun minceur dates from 1782 and the verb amincir from 1690.[5][3]

Timeline

  • 1306 – A small coin, in Guillaume Guiart.[2]
  • c. 1480 – “Penniless”, in Guillaume Coquillart.[2]
  • Early 16th century – “Thin”, of things.[2][3]
  • 1560 – “Slender”, of the body.[2]
  • Before 1646 – “Of little importance”.[2]
  • 1690 – The verb amincir.[5]
  • 1694 – Recorded by the Académie.[2]
  • 1782 – The noun minceur.[5][3]
  • 1790 – Slang for letter paper.[2]
  • 1881 – The interjection mince !.[2]

Meanings

Adjective

  1. Thin, having little thickness: Une mince couche de neige, couper de la viande en tranches minces.[9][8]
  2. Narrow, slender: mince filet d'eau.[9]
  3. Of a person, slim, slender.[9][1]
  4. (figurative) Slight, of little importance or value.[2][3]

Interjection

  1. (familiar) Drat!, darn! (expressing annoyance).[1][3]
  2. (familiar) Wow! (expressing surprise).[1]

Word family

  • minceur
  • amincir
  • émincer

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q 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 c d e f g h i j k l m n Rey, Alain, ed. (1992), Dictionnaire historique de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
  4. ^ a b c Rey, Alain, ed. (2005), Le Grand Robert de la langue française, electronic version, Paris: Le Robert
  5. ^ a b c d e Bloch, Oscar; Wartburg, Walther von (1989), Dictionnaire étymologique de la langue française, 8th ed., Paris: Presses universitaires de France
  6. ^ a b Meyer-Lübke, Wilhelm (1935), Romanisches etymologisches Wörterbuch, 3rd ed., Heidelberg: Winter
  7. ^ a b Littré, Émile (1873–1877), Dictionnaire de la langue française, 4 vols. and supplement, Paris: Hachette
  8. ^ a b Guilbert, Louis; Lagane, René; Niobey, Georges, eds. (1971–1978; 1989), Grand Larousse de la langue française, Paris: Larousse
  9. ^ a b c Rey-Debove, Josette; Rey, Alain, eds. (2007), Le Petit Robert de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
Cite this entry

“Mince.” Etymologically, 18 Oct. 2026, etymologically.com/fr/mince. Accessed 18 Oct. 2026.

Last edited on . ·