nuire

Forms

nuire^[1] Old French nuisir beside nuire.^[2][3] Anglo-Norman also has noisir and nuser.^[4]

Etymology

It is inherited from Old French nuire, inherited from Vulgar Latin *nŏcĕre, an alteration of Latin nocēre (“to harm, do wrong”), differing from the Classical verb in accentuation.^{[2][5][3][6][7]} The Classical form gave Old French nuisir.^[2][3][8] Littré explains the pair the same way, deriving Old Occitan nozer from the correct accentuation and Italian nuocere, like the French verb, from the faulty one.^[8]

Rey connects the Latin verb with an Indo-European root meaning “to put to death”: the verb first meant “to cause someone's death” before weakening to “to do harm”, while “to kill” was left to necō, the source of noyer¹.^[3] Cognate with Occitan noire and Catalan noure.^[9]

Earliest recorded meaning

The first record is nuisir in Philippe de Thaon's Comput (about 1119), “to do wrong, cause damage”; the form nuire appears in the Eneas about 1160.^[2][9]

Semantic evolution

The verb has kept its sense “to harm” throughout, used intransitively with à and also absolutely, “to be harmful” (about 1228); in Old French it could also take a direct object, as in Late Latin.^[2][3] Il ne nuira de rien de “it will do no harm to”, that is “it will be useful to”, is dated 1587.^[2] The reciprocal se nuire is recorded in 1690 and the reflexive in 1769.^[2][3]

The stem gave nuisance (about 1120), and Middle French nuisible (14th century, Oresme) remade Old French nuisable after the Late Latin nocibilis.^[3][6]

Timeline

• c. 1119 – Nuisir in Philippe de Thaon's Comput.^[2]
• c. 1120 – The derivative nuisance appears.^[3]
• c. 1160 – The form nuire in the Eneas.^[2]
• c. 1228 – Absolute use, “to be harmful”.^[2][3]
• 14th century – Oresme uses nuisible.^[6]
• 1587 – La Noue writes il ne nuira de rien de.^[2]
• 1690 – Reciprocal se nuire.^[2]
• 1769 – Reflexive se nuire.^[2]

Meanings

Verb

1. Nuire à: to harm, do wrong or damage to someone: Ses mensonges ont nui à son frère.^[10][11]
2. Of things, to be harmful or a hindrance to: Le gel nuit aux vignes.^[10][2]
3. (absolute) To do harm: mettre quelqu'un hors d'état de nuire, to make someone harmless.^[10][9]
4. Se nuire: to harm oneself, or one another.^[8][2]

Word family

• nuisible

Related words

• nuisance
• nocif
• Latin noceō

Usage notes

Ne pas nuire can mean “to help”: something that has not harmed a success has served it.^[8][12]

References

1. ^ a b 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. ^ a b c d e f g h i Rey, Alain, ed. (1992), Dictionnaire historique de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
4. ^ Anglo-Norman Dictionary (AND2), Aberystwyth University, anglo-norman.net (2nd ed., 2005–)
5. ^ Wartburg, Walther von, et al. (1922–2002), Französisches Etymologisches Wörterbuch, 25 vols., Bonn / Leipzig / Basel: Klopp / Teubner / Zbinden, p. 7, 161a
6. ^ a b c Bloch, Oscar; Wartburg, Walther von (1989), Dictionnaire étymologique de la langue française, 8th ed., Paris: Presses universitaires de France
7. ^ Rey, Alain, ed. (2005), Le Grand Robert de la langue française, electronic version, Paris: Le Robert
8. ^ a b c d Littré, Émile (1873–1877), Dictionnaire de la langue française, 4 vols. and supplement, Paris: Hachette
9. ^ a b c Rey-Debove, Josette; Rey, Alain, eds. (2007), Le Petit Robert de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
10. ^ a b c Dictionnaire Le Robert en ligne, dictionnaire.lerobert.com (accessed 2024)
11. ^ Dictionnaire de français Larousse, larousse.fr/dictionnaires/francais (accessed 2024)
12. ^ Guilbert, Louis; Lagane, René; Niobey, Georges, eds. (1971–1978; 1989), Grand Larousse de la langue française, Paris: Larousse