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parvenir

Etymology and origin of the French word parvenir

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Confidence
Established
Formation
Inherited
First attested
c. 980, Passion de Clermont (pervenir)
Inherited from
Latin pervenio
Ultimate origin
Latin (veniō)
Etymology tree
inherited borrowed derived
Latin pervenio
French parvenir

Pronunciation

  • IPA: /paʁ.və.niʁ/[1]

Forms

parvenir[1] Pervenir (about 980), parvenir (1080).[2][3]

Etymology

It is inherited from Latin perveniō (“to arrive at, reach; to attain”), from per (“through”) and veniō (“to come”) (see venir).[4][5][6][2][7][1]

Compare Old Occitan pervenir, Spanish pervenir and Italian pervenire.[8]

Earliest recorded meaning

At the end of the 10th century the Passion of Clermont uses it for arriving at a given point on a journey; the Chanson de Roland has Li emperere en Roncevals parvient “the emperor reaches Roncevaux”.[4][8]

Semantic evolution

The abstract sense “to arrive at a result one aimed at” is from about 1165, and parvenir à with an infinitive, “to manage to”, from 1480 (Coquillart).[4][5] Of things it meant to spread through space to a place (Machaut, 1342) and, from 1740, to reach its destination, as a letter.[4][5] Used absolutely, “to rise to a high social position”, it is in Amyot (1559), and Béroalde de Verville wrote Le Moyen de parvenir (about 1590).[4][5] Its participle parvenu (1718) names, disparagingly, a person who has risen socially without acquiring the manners, as in Marivaux's Le Paysan parvenu.[5]

Timeline

  • late 10th century – Pervenir, Passion.[4]
  • c. 1165 – To attain an aim.[4]
  • 1342 – Of a sound reaching a place, Machaut.[4]
  • 1480 – Parvenir à + infinitive.[4]
  • 1559 – To rise in society, Amyot.[4]
  • 1718 – Parvenu.[5]
  • 1740 – Of a thing reaching its destination.[4]

Meanings

Verb

  1. To reach, get to (a place): parvenir au sommet.[9][1]
  2. Of things, to reach, arrive: ma lettre vous est-elle parvenue ?, faire parvenir un colis.[9][3]
  3. To reach (a state or degree): parvenir à maturité, parvenir à ses fins, to achieve one's aims.[3][1]
  4. Parvenir à + infinitive: to manage to, succeed in: il est parvenu à s'échapper.[1][4]
  5. (dated) To rise in society, make one's fortune.[4][5]

Word family

  • parvenu

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b Rey, Alain, ed. (2005), Le Grand Robert de la langue française, electronic version, Paris: Le Robert
  3. ^ a b c Guilbert, Louis; Lagane, René; Niobey, Georges, eds. (1971–1978; 1989), Grand Larousse de la langue française, Paris: Larousse
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m 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. ^ a b c d e f g Rey, Alain, ed. (1992), Dictionnaire historique de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
  6. ^ Bloch, Oscar; Wartburg, Walther von (1989), Dictionnaire étymologique de la langue française, 8th ed., Paris: Presses universitaires de France
  7. ^ Wartburg, Walther von, et al. (1922–2002), Französisches Etymologisches Wörterbuch, 25 vols., Bonn / Leipzig / Basel: Klopp / Teubner / Zbinden, p. 8, 291b
  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

Related etymologies

Cite this entry

“Parvenir.” Etymologically, 18 Oct. 2026, etymologically.com/fr/parvenir. Accessed 18 Oct. 2026.

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