Etymologically
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partout

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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)