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phrase

Etymology and origin of the French word phrase

History Permalink
Confidence
Established
Formation
Borrowing
First attested
1546, Palmerin d'Olive, translated by Jean Maugin
Borrowed from
Latin phrasis
Ultimate origin
Ancient Greek (φράζω)
Etymology tree
inherited borrowed derived
Latin phrasis
English phrase
French phrase

Pronunciation

  • IPA: /fʁaz/[1]
  • IPA: /fʁɑz/[1]

Forms

phrase f (plural phrases)[1]

Etymology

It is borrowed from Latin phrasis (“diction, style, expression”), itself borrowed from Ancient Greek φράσις (phrásis, “speech; expression, diction”), from φράζω (phrázō, “to point out, explain, tell”), a verb of unknown origin.[2][3][4][5][6] English phrase (1530) is of the same origin.[2]

Earliest recorded meaning

Jean Maugin's translation of Palmerin d'Olive (1546) uses it for an arrangement of words, a way of speaking, Montaigne has frases et vocables.[2][7]

Semantic evolution

In the 16th and 17th centuries the word only meant a turn of phrase, an expression, Littré wrongly cites classical authors for the modern sense.[3] The pejorative “empty, high-flown talk” (Bouhours, 1671) lives on in phrases toutes faites (La Bruyère, 1688), faire des phrases (1729) and sans phrases “without beating about the bush” (1874).[3][2]

The grammatical sense, a group of words forming a complete meaning, “sentence”, appears in Father Buffier's grammar (1732) and the Encyclopédie (1754).[2][3] Couperin (1722) used phrase for a musical phrase.[2] In politics, a petite phrase (about 1970) is a pointed remark picked up by the media.[3]

Timeline

  • 1546 – “Way of speaking”, Maugin.[2]
  • 1671 – Empty talk, Bouhours.[3]
  • 1688 – Phrases toutes faites, La Bruyère.[2]
  • 1722 – Musical phrase, Couperin.[2]
  • 1732 – “Sentence”, Buffier.[2]
  • 1755 – The derivative phraser.[4]
  • 1788 – Phraseur.[4]

Meanings

Noun

  1. A sentence: une phrase simple, finir sa phrase.[1][8]
  2. Faire des phrases: to speak in a pompous way, sans phrases, bluntly, phrase toute faite, a stock phrase.[8][3]
  3. (music) A phrase.[2]
  4. (politics) Petite phrase: a pointed remark seized on by the media.[3]

Word family

  • phraser
  • phraseur
  • phrasé

Usage notes

Phrase is a false friend of English phrase: it usually means “sentence”.[1][2]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l 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. ^ a b c Bloch, Oscar; Wartburg, Walther von (1989), Dictionnaire étymologique de la langue française, 8th ed., Paris: Presses universitaires de France
  5. ^ Rey, Alain, ed. (2005), Le Grand Robert de la langue française, electronic version, Paris: Le Robert
  6. ^ Wartburg, Walther von, et al. (1922–2002), Französisches Etymologisches Wörterbuch, 25 vols., Bonn / Leipzig / Basel: Klopp / Teubner / Zbinden, p. 8, 399b
  7. ^ Littré, Émile (1873–1877), Dictionnaire de la langue française, 4 vols. and supplement, Paris: Hachette
  8. ^ a b Rey-Debove, Josette; Rey, Alain, eds. (2007), Le Petit Robert de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert

Related etymologies

Cite this entry

“Phrase.” Etymologically, 18 Oct. 2026, etymologically.com/fr/phrase. Accessed 18 Oct. 2026.

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