obésité

Forms

obésité f (usually uncountable, plural obésités)^[1]

Etymology

It is borrowed from Latin obēsitās (“excessive stoutness”), a noun formed on obēsus (“fat”).^[2][3][4][5] Rey explains the adjective as the past participle of obedō (“to gnaw, eat away”), made of ob and edō (“to eat”); it first meant “gnawed”, hence “lean”, and in imperial times took the opposite sense of “devouring”, hence “fat”.^[3] Picoche places it in the family of the Indo-European root Proto-Indo-European *ed- (“to chew”), beside comestible.^[6]

The adjective obèse was borrowed from the same Latin family much later, in 1825.^[3]

Earliest recorded meaning

It is first recorded in 1550, in H. Fierabras's Méthode chirurgicale, for an excess of body fat.^[2][3]

Semantic evolution

The sense of excessive fatness has been the word's main one since the 16th century; the GLLF has a further record from Liébault in 1582.^[2][7] In the 19th century it took a rare figurative sense, a heavy and dull state of mind, recorded by Boiste in 1829.^[2][3]

In medicine it names a specific disorder, the excess of adipose tissue, distinct from mere plumpness; the GLLF dates the medical use to Brillat-Savarin in 1826.^[3][7][8] Brillat-Savarin also coined the rare adjectives obésifuge and obésigène, and obésiologue or obésologue (1978) is a specialist in the condition.^[3] The English word obesity (1610s) comes from the French word and directly from Latin.^[9]

Timeline

• 1550 – H. Fierabras uses it in his Méthode chirurgicale.^[2]
• 1582 – Liébault uses it.^[7]
• 1610s – English borrows it as obesity.^[9]
• 1825 – The adjective obèse is borrowed by Brillat-Savarin.^[3]
• 1826 – Brillat-Savarin uses it as a medical term.^[7]
• 1829 – Boiste records the figurative sense of a dull, heavy mind.^[2]
• 1978 – Obésiologue is recorded for a specialist in obesity.^[3]

Meanings

Noun

1. The state of being very fat; obesity.^[8][10][1]
2. (medicine) An excess of adipose tissue in the body, with a weight well above normal.^[8][5]
3. (figurative, rare) Heaviness and dullness of mind.^[2][3]

Related words

• obèse
• comestible
• Latin obēsus

References

1. ^ a b c Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f g 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 Rey, Alain, ed. (1992), Dictionnaire historique de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
4. ^ Rey, Alain, ed. (2005), Le Grand Robert de la langue française, electronic version, Paris: Le Robert
5. ^ a b Académie française (1992–2024), Dictionnaire de l'Académie française, 9th ed., Paris: Académie française / Fayard / Imprimerie nationale
6. ^ Picoche, Jacqueline (1991), Dictionnaire étymologique du français, Paris: Le Robert (Les Usuels du Robert)
7. ^ a b c d Guilbert, Louis; Lagane, René; Niobey, Georges, eds. (1971–1978; 1989), Grand Larousse de la langue française, Paris: Larousse
8. ^ a b c Rey-Debove, Josette; Rey, Alain, eds. (2007), Le Petit Robert de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
9. ^ a b Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
10. ^ Dictionnaire Le Robert en ligne, dictionnaire.lerobert.com (accessed 2024)