pécher

Forms

pécher^[1] Old French pechier (about 1050); the form pecher is found about 1190 in Garnier de Pont-Sainte-Maxence.^[2][3]

Etymology

It is inherited from Old French pechier, inherited from Latin peccō (“to commit an offence, to err”).^[4][1][5] The Latin verb had the sense “to sin against divine law” only in Christian use;^[4][2] in Classical Latin it meant to stumble, and morally to err or do wrong.^[6] Rey reports the idea that the verb came from an unattested stem *pecco-, related to pēs (“foot”), and compares Sanskrit स्खलति (skhálati, “he stumbles”), which would point to an Indo-European origin.^[6]

Cognate with Walloon péché, Spanish pecar and Italian peccare.^[7]

Earliest recorded meaning

It is first found about 1050 in the Vie de saint Alexis (Ki ad pechét, “who has sinned”), meaning to commit a sin.^[4][6]

Semantic evolution

The verb followed the same development as péché: from the religious sense it was extended to failing or falling short in general (about 1215, Raoul de Houdenc).^[6][4] Oresme uses it of opinions that are wrong (1370–72).^[4] The constructions pécher contre (1663, Molière, of a comedy that breaks the rules of art) and pécher par (1682, La Fontaine, pécher par excès) followed.^[4][6]

Old medicine used the verb (1314) of bodily humours that were corrupt or too abundant, beside the adjective peccant.^[6][4] The Académie recorded in 1694 a wine that pèche en couleur, falls short in colour.^[4]

Timeline

• c. 1050 – Pechier appears in the Vie de saint Alexis.^[4][2]
• c. 1190 – The form pecher is found in Garnier de Pont-Sainte-Maxence.^[2][3]
• c. 1215 – Raoul de Houdenc uses it for “to fail, fall short”.^[4][6]
• 1314 – Henri de Mondeville's surgery uses it of the bodily humours.^[4]
• 1663 – Molière writes pécher contre the rules of art.^[4][6]
• 1682 – La Fontaine has pécher par leur excès.^[4]
• 1694 – The Académie records du vin peche en couleur.^[4]

Meanings

Verb

1. (religion) To sin, to commit a sin or sins.^[8][9]
2. Pécher contre: to offend against a moral or social rule.^[9][8]
3. To make a mistake, to err; of things, to be faulty or deficient: pécher par, to fall short through.^[8][4]

Related words

• péché
• pécheur
• peccable
• impeccable
• peccant
• Latin peccō

Usage notes

The é becomes è before a mute syllable (je pèche), except in the future and conditional, which Littré gives as je pécherai.^[7]

References

1. ^ a b c Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d Guilbert, Louis; Lagane, René; Niobey, Georges, eds. (1971–1978; 1989), Grand Larousse de la langue française, Paris: Larousse
3. ^ a b Rey, Alain, ed. (2005), Le Grand Robert de la langue française, electronic version, Paris: Le Robert
4. ^ 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
5. ^ Wartburg, Walther von, et al. (1922–2002), Französisches Etymologisches Wörterbuch, 25 vols., Bonn / Leipzig / Basel: Klopp / Teubner / Zbinden, p. 8, 98a
6. ^ a b c d e f g h Rey, Alain, ed. (1992), Dictionnaire historique de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
7. ^ a b Littré, Émile (1873–1877), Dictionnaire de la langue française, 4 vols. and supplement, Paris: Hachette
8. ^ a b c Rey-Debove, Josette; Rey, Alain, eds. (2007), Le Petit Robert de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
9. ^ a b Dictionnaire de français Larousse, larousse.fr/dictionnaires/francais (accessed 2024)