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plaisanterie

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Etymology and origin of the French word plaisanterie

Confidence
Established
Formation
Derivation
First attested
1279 Laurent, Somme More words from the 13th century
Ultimate origin
Latin placeō
Etymology tree
inherited borrowed derived
French plaisanter
French plaisanterie

Pronunciation

  • /plɛ.zɑ̃.tʁi/[1]
  • /ple.zɑ̃.tʁi/[1]

Forms

plaisanterie f (plural plaisanteries)[1] Old French plesanterie (1279), an isolated record;[2][3][4] plaisanterie from 1538.[2][3][4]

Etymology

It is formed from French plaisanter + -erie according to the TLFi and the DHLF;[5][6] the Robert dictionaries and the GLLF derive it from the adjective plaisant.[2][3][4] Bloch and Wartburg list it, with the verb of 1539, among the derivatives of plaire,[7] which goes back to placeō (“to please”).[7]

Earliest recorded meaning

The first record is plesanterie in Laurent's Somme (1279), for a mockery, something said or done to amuse; the word is then not found again until Robert Estienne (1538).[5][2][4]

Semantic evolution

From the start it meant something said or done to amuse, with a nuance of mockery.[5][6] It entered several phrases: tourner en plaisanterie (Molière, 1663), mauvaise plaisanterie (1689, Madame de Sévigné), plaisanterie à part “seriously” (1694), entendre la plaisanterie (1730) and n'entendre pas plaisanterie (1798), the first form of modern ne pas comprendre la plaisanterie.[5][6]

By extension it came to mean a trifle, a thing of no value (1874), and then a very easy thing (1903).[6][5][4] In parenté à plaisanterie, a calque of African languages spread by ethnology, it names a bond between two groups that allows joking familiarity.[6]

Timeline

  • 1279 – Plesanterie appears in Laurent's Somme.[5]
  • 1538 – Robert Estienne records plaisanterie.[4][7]
  • 1663 – Molière uses tourner en plaisanterie.[5]
  • 1689 – Madame de Sévigné writes mauvaise plaisanterie.[5][4]
  • 1694 – The Académie records plaisanterie à part.[5]
  • 1730 – Rollin uses entendre la plaisanterie.[5]
  • 1798 – The Académie records n'entendre pas plaisanterie.[5][4]
  • 1874 – Larousse records the sense “trifle”.[5]
  • 1903 – Larousse records the sense “very easy thing”.[4][6]

Meanings

Noun

  1. Something said or done to amuse; a joke, a jest.[3][8]
  2. Words or acts meant to mock someone; teasing: mauvaise plaisanterie, ne pas comprendre la plaisanterie.[8][5]
  3. Something not to be taken seriously, an absurdity.[8][5]
  4. Something very easy, a trifle.[8][4]
  5. Plaisanterie à part: seriously, joking aside.[5][9]

Usage notes

The saying les plaisanteries les plus courtes sont les meilleures means that one should know when to stop joking.[1][10]

References

  1. ^ a b c d Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d Rey, Alain, ed. (2005), Le Grand Robert de la langue française, electronic version, Paris: Le Robert
  3. ^ a b c d Rey-Debove, Josette; Rey, Alain, eds. (2007), Le Petit Robert de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Guilbert, Louis; Lagane, René; Niobey, Georges, eds. (1971–1978; 1989), Grand Larousse de la langue française, Paris: Larousse
  5. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o 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
  6. ^ a b c d e f Rey, Alain, ed. (1992), Dictionnaire historique de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
  7. ^ a b c Bloch, Oscar; Wartburg, Walther von (1989), Dictionnaire étymologique de la langue française, 8th ed., Paris: Presses universitaires de France
  8. ^ a b c d Dictionnaire Le Robert en ligne, dictionnaire.lerobert.com (accessed 2024)
  9. ^ Littré, Émile (1873–1877), Dictionnaire de la langue française, 4 vols. and supplement, Paris: Hachette
  10. ^ Quemada, Bernard, ed. (1959–2006), Datations et documents lexicographiques (Base historique du vocabulaire français, BHVF), Paris: Klincksieck / CNRS / Champion; ATILF
Cite this entry

“Plaisanterie.” Etymologically, 15 Nov. 2026, etymologically.com/fr/plaisanterie. Accessed 16 Nov. 2026.

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