Etymologically
Log in

partout

Etymology and origin of the French word partout

History Permalink
Confidence
Established
Formation
Compound
First attested
late 10th century, Passion de Clermont (per tot)
Ultimate origin
Latin (per,tottus)
Etymology tree
inherited borrowed derived
French par
French partout
French parmi

Pronunciation

  • IPA: /paʁ.tu/[1]

Forms

partout[1] Old French per tot, par tut, par tot; the Académie wrote par tout from 1694 to 1762 and partout from 1798.[2][3]

Etymology

It is from French par + tout, in their old forms “per” and “tot”.[3][4][5][6][7] Wiktionary compares Catalan pertot, and the different constructions Italian dappertutto and Spanish “por todas partes”.[1]

Earliest recorded meaning

As per tot it is found in the Passion de Clermont (late 10th century), meaning “everywhere”.[3][4] A 12th-century life of Thomas Becket has Pur ço ert il par tut durement renumez (“therefore he was greatly renowned everywhere”).[8]

Semantic evolution

De par tot “from everywhere” dates from about 1175 and the popular intensive tout partout from about 1190.[3][4][2] By the end of the 12th century it could also mean “in all circumstances”, and Montaigne (1580) uses it for “in many places”.[4][2] Partout où “wherever” is recorded in 1396.[3]

In games it follows a number to show a tie, as in dominoes (six partout) and, more recently, in tennis and football (quarante partout, trois partout).[4][8]

Timeline

  • late 10th century – Per tot in the Passion de Clermont.[3]
  • c. 1175 – De par tot.[3]
  • c. 1190 – Tout partout.[4]
  • 1396 – Partout où.[3]
  • 1580 – “In many places”, in Montaigne.[4]
  • 1798 – The Académie adopts the spelling partout.[3]

Meanings

Adverb

  1. everywhere: on ne peut être partout à la fois.[9][10]
  2. In many places: ses vêtements traînent partout.[10][4]
  3. (games, sport) All, apiece: trois partout, quarante partout.[10][11]
  4. De partout: from all sides, partout où: wherever.[10][3]
  5. Mettre son nez partout: to poke one's nose into everything.[9][10]

References

  1. ^ a b c Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c Guilbert, Louis; Lagane, René; Niobey, Georges, eds. (1971–1978; 1989), Grand Larousse de la langue française, Paris: Larousse
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j 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
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h Rey, Alain, ed. (1992), Dictionnaire historique de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
  5. ^ Bloch, Oscar; Wartburg, Walther von (1989), Dictionnaire étymologique de la langue française, 8th ed., Paris: Presses universitaires de France
  6. ^ 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. 13/2, 125b
  8. ^ a b Littré, Émile (1873–1877), Dictionnaire de la langue française, 4 vols. and supplement, Paris: Hachette
  9. ^ a b Rey-Debove, Josette; Rey, Alain, eds. (2007), Le Petit Robert de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
  10. ^ a b c d e Dictionnaire de français Larousse, larousse.fr/dictionnaires/francais (accessed 2024)
  11. ^ Dictionnaire Le Robert en ligne, dictionnaire.lerobert.com (accessed 2024)
Cite this entry

“Partout.” Etymologically, 18 Oct. 2026, etymologically.com/fr/partout. Accessed 18 Oct. 2026.

Last edited on . ·