plaquer

Forms

plaquer^[1] Old French plaquier; the spelling plaquer is recorded by Palsgrave in 1530.^[2][3][4]

Etymology

It is borrowed from Middle Dutch placken (“to smear, patch, stick”),^{[5][6][7][2][8]} a word of unknown origin, which survives as Dutch plakken.^[6] Rey mentions a proposed link with the Indo-European root for “to strike” seen in Latin plāga and plangō.^[6] Littré and Wiktionary derive the verb from plaque instead,^[4][1] but Bloch and Wartburg date the noun only from 1611 and list it among the derivatives of the verb.^[7]

Earliest recorded meaning

It is first recorded in the middle of the 13th century in the Chansons et dits artésiens, for applying gold and silver on the hair; the word spread from the north of France with a wider sense than the Dutch one, “to apply one thing against another”.^[5][6]

Semantic evolution

A metaphorical plaquer un mur de mortier (before 1272) foreshadows the technical sense “to apply plaster to a wall” (1553).^[5][6] In Old and Middle French it was also used intransitively for “to appear” (1288) and reflexively for “to put oneself, sit” (about 1385).^[5][4] From 1505 it meant applying one flat thing on another, and was specialized in cabinetmaking for veneer (1676) and in goldsmith's work for plating metal (1690); plaqué named plated metal in 1798 and something added on in an unnatural way in 1829 (Sainte-Beuve).^[5][6]

The figurative plaquer là qqn “to abandon someone” is found in Calvin in 1544, but its modern familiar use dates from 1867, later also for giving up a job.^[5][6] With a person as object, the verb meant “to throw to the ground” (1747), then “to press hard against” (1886); rugby took it up for tackling a player (1900), and wrestling in 1949.^[5][6] Plaquer un accord, to play all the notes of a chord at once, dates from 1838 (Berlioz).^[5][6]

Its oldest derivative is plakeur “mason, plasterer” (1239, Douai), later plaqueur; placage dates from 1318 and placard from 1364.^[6][7]

Timeline

• Mid-13th century – First record, in the Chansons et dits artésiens.^[5]
• 1288 – Used intransitively for “to appear” in Renart le nouvel.^[5]
• 1505 – Used for applying one flat thing on another.^[5][6]
• 1544 – Calvin uses it for abandoning someone.^[5][6]
• 1676 – Félibien uses it for veneering.^[5][3]
• 1690 – Furetière records it for plating with metal.^[5][3]
• 1838 – Berlioz writes plaquer un accord.^[5]
• 1867 – The familiar sense “to dump, leave” spreads.^[6]
• 1900 – First rugby use, for tackling.^[5][6]

Meanings

Verb

1. To plate or veneer: to cover a common material with a thin sheet of a more precious one.^[9][10][5]
2. To put or press something flat: se plaquer les cheveux.^[9][11]
3. Plaquer un accord: to play all the notes of a chord together.^[9][11][5]
4. To press someone or something hard against something.^[11][5]
5. (rugby) To tackle the ball carrier.^[11][1][5]
6. (familiar) To dump, to leave someone or give something up.^[11][1][6]
7. Plaqué (past participle, figurative): added on in a superficial, unnatural way.^[9][5]

Word family

• plaquage
• plaqueur
• placage
• plaque
• placard

Related words

• Dutch plakken

References

1. ^ a b c d e 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 Littré, Émile (1873–1877), Dictionnaire de la langue française, 4 vols. and supplement, Paris: Hachette
5. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u 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 g h i j k l m n o 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. ^ Wartburg, Walther von, et al. (1922–2002), Französisches Etymologisches Wörterbuch, 25 vols., Bonn / Leipzig / Basel: Klopp / Teubner / Zbinden, p. 16, 626b
9. ^ a b c d Rey-Debove, Josette; Rey, Alain, eds. (2007), Le Petit Robert de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
10. ^ Dictionnaire de français Larousse, larousse.fr/dictionnaires/francais (accessed 2024)
11. ^ a b c d e Dictionnaire Le Robert en ligne, dictionnaire.lerobert.com (accessed 2024)