Etymologically
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paquet

Etymology and origin of the French word paquet

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Confidence
Probable
Formation
Derivation
First attested
1368 (parquet); 1388 (paquet)
Ultimate origin
Middle Dutch (pac)

Pronunciation

  • IPA: /pa.kɛ/[1]

Forms

paquet m (plural paquets)[1] Parquet (1368), paquet (1388), pacquet; the base noun is recorded as pakke (1410) and pacque (1510).[2][3][4]

Etymology

It is a diminutive formed on Middle French pacque (“bale (of cloth)”), with the suffix -et.[2][3][5][6][7] The base word is borrowed from Middle Dutch pac (“bundle, bale”), recorded in a Medieval Latin text of 1199; the verb paquier (“to pack”) in Picard and Flemish texts of the same period supports a Dutch source.[3][5][6][1] Rey thinks the form pakke was probably taken from English pack, itself probably from Dutch.[3] Bloch and Wartburg list related words in many languages, German Pack, Old Norse pakki and Irish and Welsh forms, but find the starting point uncertain, Wiktionary traces it to Proto-Germanic *pakkô.[5][1]

Earliest recorded meaning

A document of 1368 has parquet for several things tied or wrapped together, an object wrapped to be carried or protected, paquet appears in an inventory of the dukes of Burgundy in 1388.[2][3]

Semantic evolution

From 1464 it was a bundle of letters for one person, and in Furetière (1690) all the letters carried by a courier.[2] Faire son paquet “to get ready to leave” is recorded about 1485, and “to prepare for death” in 1585, hasarder le paquet (1606), later risquer le paquet (La Fontaine, 1692), was to venture on a risky undertaking.[2][3]

It was applied to people: an awkward or stupid person (Académie, 1798), someone badly dressed or stout (1803).[2][8] Paquet de mer “heavy sea” dates from 1831, un paquet de “a great quantity of” from Zola (1873), and mettre le paquet “to pull out all the stops” from 1931, in sport.[2] In rugby le paquet is the forwards (1914).[2][8] The packaging itself, of paper or cardboard, is a paquet from 1845, as in un paquet de cigarettes.[2][3]

Timeline

  • 1368 – Parquet “bundle”.[2]
  • 1388 – Paquet.[2]
  • 1464 – A bundle of letters.[2]
  • c. 1485 – Faire son paquet.[2]
  • 1692 – Risquer le paquet, La Fontaine.[2]
  • 1845 – A manufactured packet.[2]
  • 1914 – The rugby pack.[2]
  • 1931 – Mettre le paquet.[2]

Meanings

Noun

  1. A parcel, package: envoyer un paquet par la poste, faire un paquet.[9][1]
  2. A packet, pack: un paquet de cigarettes, de pâtes, un paquet de cartes.[1][3]
  3. A bundle: un paquet de linge, faire ses paquets, to pack one's bags.[9][1]
  4. (familiar) A large amount: un paquet de; a wad (of cash); mettre le paquet, to go all out.[2][1]
  5. Paquet de mer: a big wave breaking on board.[2][1]
  6. (rugby) The pack, the forwards.[2][1]
  7. (familiar, dated) A clumsy person; a stout or badly dressed person.[2]

Word family

  • paqueter
  • paquetage
  • empaqueter
  • dépaqueter
  • pack
  • English packet

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j 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 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 Rey, Alain, ed. (1992), Dictionnaire historique de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
  4. ^ Guilbert, Louis; Lagane, René; Niobey, Georges, eds. (1971–1978; 1989), Grand Larousse de la langue française, Paris: Larousse
  5. ^ a b c Bloch, Oscar; Wartburg, Walther von (1989), Dictionnaire étymologique de la langue française, 8th ed., Paris: Presses universitaires de France
  6. ^ a b Rey, Alain, ed. (2005), Le Grand Robert de la langue française, electronic version, Paris: Le Robert
  7. ^ Wartburg, Walther von, et al. (1922–2002), Französisches Etymologisches Wörterbuch, 25 vols., Bonn / Leipzig / Basel: Klopp / Teubner / Zbinden, p. 16, 613a
  8. ^ a b Quemada, Bernard, ed. (1959–2006), Datations et documents lexicographiques (Base historique du vocabulaire français, BHVF), Paris: Klincksieck / CNRS / Champion; ATILF
  9. ^ a b Rey-Debove, Josette; Rey, Alain, eds. (2007), Le Petit Robert de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
Cite this entry

“Paquet.” Etymologically, 18 Oct. 2026, etymologically.com/fr/paquet. Accessed 18 Oct. 2026.

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