Etymologically
Log in

mise

This is the current revision of this entry, as edited by bogdan on 22 October 2026 at 03:41. This address is a permanent link to this version.
Changes in this edit History

Pronunciation

Forms

mise f (plural mises)[1]

Etymology

It is the feminine past participle of mettre used as a noun.[2][3][4] The verb is inherited from Latin mittō (“to let go, send”), which took the sense “to put in a place” in popular Latin.[5][6]

Earliest recorded meaning

In Benoît de Sainte-Maure's Roman de Troie (about 1165) a mise is expenditure, the money one has spent.[2][7]

Semantic evolution

From the sense “expenditure” came être de mise (before 1558), said of a coin that is current and now figuratively of what is acceptable or fitting, used above all in the negative.[7][2] Other uses follow those of the verb: a wager (about 1225), the stake at an auction (mise à prix, 1495) and at play (1611), whence sauver la mise (1867), to get someone out of trouble.[7][2][4]

From 1180–1190 mise also meant putting someone in prison, a sense now lost, and, from 1262 the act of putting something in a place.[2][7] The modern word lives in many fixed groups: mise en liberté (1795), mise en scène (1800), mise en cause (1832), mise en train (1834), mise bas and mise en œuvre (1835), mise en demeure (1839), mise à pied (1865) and mise au point, first in sculpture (1872), then in photography (1903).[2][7] Homme de belle mise (1461) was a well-made, sociable man, and mise has meant a way of dressing since 1783.[2]

Timeline

  • c. 1165 – “Expenditure” in the Roman de Troie.[2]
  • c. 1225 – “Wager”.[2]
  • 1180–1190 – “Putting in prison” in the Roman de Renart.[2]
  • 1262 – The act of putting something in a place.[2]
  • Before 1558 – Être de mise, of current coin.[2]
  • 1611 – The stake at play, in Cotgrave.[2]
  • 1783 – “Way of dressing” in Restif de la Bretonne.[2]
  • 1800 – Mise en scène.[2]
  • 1867 – Sauver la mise.[4][7]

Meanings

Noun

  1. The act of putting something somewhere or into a state; usually with a complement: mise en place, mise en bouteilles.[8][9]
  2. Mise en scène: the staging of a play or film; figuratively, an elaborate show put on to impress.[8][10]
  3. Mise bas: the act of an animal giving birth.[8]
  4. A stake: money risked at play or invested in a business, mise de fonds, a capital outlay.[9][4]
  5. (Switzerland) An auction.[9]
  6. A way of dressing, attire.[9][1]
  7. Être de mise: to be acceptable or appropriate.[9][7]
  8. Sauver la mise (à quelqu'un): to get (someone) out of trouble.[7][4]

Word family

  • miser
  • mise en scène
  • mise au point
  • mise en demeure
  • mise à pied

References

  1. ^ a b c Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ 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
  3. ^ Rey, Alain, ed. (2005), Le Grand Robert de la langue française, electronic version, Paris: Le Robert
  4. ^ a b c d e Guilbert, Louis; Lagane, René; Niobey, Georges, eds. (1971–1978; 1989), Grand Larousse de la langue française, Paris: Larousse
  5. ^ Bloch, Oscar; Wartburg, Walther von (1989), Dictionnaire étymologique de la langue française, 8th ed., Paris: Presses universitaires de France
  6. ^ Wartburg, Walther von, et al. (1922–2002), Französisches Etymologisches Wörterbuch, 25 vols., Bonn / Leipzig / Basel: Klopp / Teubner / Zbinden, p. 6/2, 188a
  7. ^ a b c d e f g h Rey, Alain, ed. (1992), Dictionnaire historique de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
  8. ^ a b c Rey-Debove, Josette; Rey, Alain, eds. (2007), Le Petit Robert de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
  9. ^ a b c d e Dictionnaire de français Larousse, larousse.fr/dictionnaires/francais (accessed 2024)
  10. ^ Dictionnaire Le Robert en ligne, dictionnaire.lerobert.com (accessed 2024)