moucher

Forms

moucher^[1] Old French mochier, mouchier (12th century), moucher from the 14th century.^[2] Anglo-Norman also muscher.^[3]

Etymology

It is inherited from Old French mochier, inherited from Late Latin muccō (“to blow the nose”), from muccus (“mucus, snot”), a variant of mūcus.^[4][5][2][6] The TLFi finds the Latin verb in the 6th century, in a Latin translation of Oribasius, while Bloch and Wartburg and the Grand Robert give it as a Vulgar Latin form.^[4][7][8][1] Littré compares Walloon mokî “to snuff a candle” and Picard mouker.^[9]

Cognate with Occitan mocar, Catalan mocar and Spanish mocar.^[10]

Earliest recorded meaning

It is first found at the end of the 11th century in Rashi's French glosses, meaning to press the nostrils to clear them of mucus.^[4][2]

Semantic evolution

The verb was first transitive and is used absolutely from 1190 (Roman de Renart); this use has given way to the reflexive se moucher, as in the proverb qui se sent morveux se mouche “if the cap fits, wear it”.^[5][4] By analogy it came to mean cutting off the burnt end of a candle wick: the TLFi dates this to 1380, while the Grand Larousse has mouchier in this sense in Gautier de Coinci about 1220 and Bloch and Wartburg place it in the 12th century.^[4][2][7][9] From it come technical uses, such as moucher un cordage in the navy (1752).^[5][2]

The figurative sense “to put someone in his place” is found in the Farce de Maître Pathelin (1464), in the line Comment il a esté mouché!, but it spread mainly in the 19th century, with se faire moucher (1839).^[4][5] The Grand Larousse notes that it first meant “to give someone a thrashing” in the early 16th century.^[2] Ne pas se moucher du pied meant in the 16th century “to be clever”, and today describes someone with great pretensions.^[2][11]

mouchoir (1460–1466, mouschouer) belongs to the nasal sense, mouchette (1523) to the candle.^[5][7]

Timeline

• late 11th century – Mochier appears in Rashi's glosses.^[4][2]
• 1190 – Used absolutely in the Roman de Renart.^[4]
• c. 1220 – Gautier de Coinci uses mouchier of candles.^[2]
• 1380 – The TLFi's first record of the candle sense.^[4]
• 1460–1466 – The derivative mouchoir appears.^[5]
• 1464 – Mouché “put in his place” in the Farce de Maître Pathelin.^[4][5]
• 1752 – Moucher un cordage is recorded.^[4][2]
• 1835 – The Académie records moucher du sang.^[12][2]
• 1839 – Stendhal uses se faire moucher.^[4]

Meanings

Verb

1. To clear (the nose) of mucus by pressing the nostrils and breathing out hard, as in mouche ton nez !.^[12][5] Also, to wipe the nose of (a child).^[12][2][5]
2. To bring out through the nose: moucher du sang.^[12][2]
3. (figurative, familiar) To put (someone) sharply in his place, to snub.^[12][2] Se faire moucher.^[12][2][4]
4. To snuff (a candle or lamp), cutting off the burnt end of the wick: moucher une chandelle.^[2][4]
5. (nautical) To cut off the frayed end of a rope: moucher un cordage.^[2][9]
6. Se moucher: to blow one's nose.^[12][2] Qui se sent morveux se mouche: whoever feels the criticism applies should take it to heart.^[12][2]
7. Ne pas se moucher du pied, ne pas se moucher du coude: to think highly of oneself.^[12][2]

Word family

• mouchoir
• mouchette
• mouchage

Related words

• mucus
• Latin muccus

Usage notes

A separate verb moucher, formed from mouche “fly”, meant “to flit about like a fly” at the end of the 17th century, and since 1907 (Larousse) is a fishing term: of a trout, to rise to the fly.^[8][2] Littré also lists a moucher “to spy on”, likewise from mouche, for which moucharder was already more usual.^[9]

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 p q r s t u 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 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. ^ a b c d e f g h i Rey, Alain, ed. (1992), Dictionnaire historique de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
6. ^ Wartburg, Walther von, et al. (1922–2002), Französisches Etymologisches Wörterbuch, 25 vols., Bonn / Leipzig / Basel: Klopp / Teubner / Zbinden, p. 6/3, 173a
7. ^ a b c Bloch, Oscar; Wartburg, Walther von (1989), Dictionnaire étymologique de la langue française, 8th ed., Paris: Presses universitaires de France
8. ^ a b Rey, Alain, ed. (2005), Le Grand Robert de la langue française, electronic version, Paris: Le Robert
9. ^ a b c d Littré, Émile (1873–1877), Dictionnaire de la langue française, 4 vols. and supplement, Paris: Hachette
10. ^ Meyer-Lübke, Wilhelm (1935), Romanisches etymologisches Wörterbuch, 3rd ed., Heidelberg: Winter
11. ^ Quemada, Bernard, ed. (1959–2006), Datations et documents lexicographiques (Base historique du vocabulaire français, BHVF), Paris: Klincksieck / CNRS / Champion; ATILF
12. ^ a b c d e f g h i Rey-Debove, Josette; Rey, Alain, eds. (2007), Le Petit Robert de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert