Etymologically
Log in

plomb

This is the current revision of this entry, as edited by bogdan on 17 October 2026 at 21:34. This address is a permanent link to this version.
Changes in this edit History

Pronunciation

  • IPA: /plɔ̃/[1]

Forms

plomb m (plural plombs)[1] Old French plum (1121–1134), plom, plon; the ⟨b⟩ was restored in the 15th century, partly after plomber; it was not pronounced in the 16th century (Palsgrave).[2][3][4]

Etymology

It is inherited from Old French plum, inherited from Latin plumbum (“lead; lead shot; lead pipe”).[5][2][6][7] The origin of the Latin word is obscure; it is probably borrowed from a Mediterranean language, perhaps Iberian, lead coming from Spain.[2][8]

Cognate with Italian piombo, Old Occitan plom, Catalan plom, Spanish plomo, Portuguese chumbo and Romanian plumb.[8][4][9] English plumb, English plunge and English plumber come from French.[8]

Earliest recorded meaning

Philippe de Thaon's Bestiaire (1121–1134) has plum for the metal.[5][2]

Semantic evolution

Old French already used it for objects of lead: the plumb-bob (Villard de Honnecourt, 1260), whence à plomb “vertically” (1552) and later fil à plomb (1751), and the leaden seal of papal bulls (late 14th century), later any seal of lead (1638).[5][2] A plomb was also the lead of a stained-glass window (1454), the sinker of a fishing line (1580) and, from about 1600 (Desportes), shot for a firearm, whence avoir du plomb dans l'aile (1878).[5][2]

Figuratively plomb expresses heaviness: soleil de plomb (Lamartine, 1835), sommeil de plomb (Balzac, 1842), avoir du plomb dans la tête.[5][4] In electricity the plomb de sûreté (1890) or fuse gave faire sauter les plombs and péter les plombs “to lose control” (1980s).[5][2] In 19th-century slang ferme ton plomb ! meant “shut your mouth” (1867).[2][10]

Timeline

  • 1121–1134 – Plum in Philippe de Thaon.[5]
  • 1260 – A plumb-bob.[5]
  • 1304 – Plomberie.[6]
  • 1316 – Plombier.[6]
  • 1552 – À plomb.[5]
  • c. 1600 – Shot, in Desportes.[5]
  • 1835 – Soleil de plomb.[5]
  • 1890 – Plomb de sûreté.[5]

Meanings

Noun

  1. Lead (metal): tuyau de plomb, essence sans plomb.[8][1]
  2. Shot: du gros plomb, avoir du plomb dans l'aile: to be in a bad way.[11][5]
  3. A sinker; a plumb-bob: fil à plomb, à plomb: vertically.[1][5]
  4. A lead seal: plomb de douane.[11][5]
  5. (informal) A fuse: les plombs ont sauté, péter les plombs: to blow one's top.[1][2]
  6. Heaviness: soleil de plomb, sommeil de plomb, soldat de plomb: tin soldier.[5][2]

Word family

  • plombage
  • plomber
  • plombier
  • surplomber
  • aplomb
  • plomberie
  • surplomb

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 Rey, Alain, ed. (1992), Dictionnaire historique de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
  3. ^ 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 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 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. 9, 95b
  8. ^ a b c d Rey-Debove, Josette; Rey, Alain, eds. (2007), Le Petit Robert de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
  9. ^ Meyer-Lübke, Wilhelm (1935), Romanisches etymologisches Wörterbuch, 3rd ed., Heidelberg: Winter
  10. ^ Quemada, Bernard, ed. (1959–2006), Datations et documents lexicographiques (Base historique du vocabulaire français, BHVF), Paris: Klincksieck / CNRS / Champion; ATILF
  11. ^ a b Dictionnaire de français Larousse, larousse.fr/dictionnaires/francais (accessed 2024)