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plongeur

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Etymology and origin of the French word plongeur

Confidence
Established
Formation
Derivation
First attested
1306 Joinville More words from the 14th century
Ultimate origin
Latin plumbum
Etymology tree
inherited borrowed derived
French plonger
French plongeur
From the same root
French plongeon ← plonger

Pronunciation

  • /plɔ̃.ʒœʁ/[1]

Forms

plongeur (feminine plongeuse, masculine plural plongeurs, feminine plural plongeuses)[1] Old French plungeur and plongeour;[2][3] Nicot has plongeur in 1606.[2][3]

Etymology

It is formed from French plonger + -eur.[2][1][4] The verb is from Vulgar Latin *plumbicō, from plumbum (“lead”), first said of nets and sounding lines weighted with lead to make them sink.[5][2]

Earliest recorded meaning

Joinville uses plungeur in 1306 for a man who dives into the sea:[2][4] the king sends for the master mariner, who “envoie quatre plungeurs en la mer” (“sends four divers into the sea”).[6]

Semantic evolution

From divers in the sea the word spread to anyone who dives into water,[4] and in modern times to the diver with breathing equipment and the athlete who dives head first.[7][8] It was applied to diving birds in 1764, first in apposition.[2][4]

Following the transitive sense of plonger, it named in 1723 the paper worker who dips the moulds into the vat,[2][4] and in 1858 a single-acting piston, the plunger.[2] The restaurant plongeur who washes the dishes is recorded from 1869 (Bloch and Wartburg have 1867): he plunges his hands into the water.[2][5]

Timeline

  • 1306 – Joinville writes plungeur for a diver.[2]
  • 1606 – Nicot records the spelling plongeur.[2]
  • 1723 – Savary uses it for a worker in paper making.[2]
  • 1764 – Bonnet writes of oiseaux plongeurs.[2]
  • 1858 – It names a kind of piston.[2]
  • 1869 – Littré records the restaurant dishwasher.[2][4]

Meanings

Noun

  1. A diver, a person who goes under water, with or without breathing equipment, to fish, explore or work.[7][9][2]
  2. A person who dives head first into the water, and a diving athlete.[7][9]
  3. A dishwasher in a restaurant or café.[2][8][6]
  4. A diving water bird.[7][2]
  5. (technical) A plunger, a single-acting piston.[2]

Adjective

  1. diving, chiefly of an animal: un oiseau plongeur.[1][2]

References

  1. ^ a b c d Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t 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 Rey, Alain, ed. (2005), Le Grand Robert de la langue française, electronic version, Paris: Le Robert
  4. ^ a b c d e f Rey, Alain, ed. (1992), Dictionnaire historique de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
  5. ^ a b Bloch, Oscar; Wartburg, Walther von (1989), Dictionnaire étymologique de la langue française, 8th ed., Paris: Presses universitaires de France
  6. ^ a b Littré, Émile (1873–1877), Dictionnaire de la langue française, 4 vols. and supplement, Paris: Hachette
  7. ^ a b c d Rey-Debove, Josette; Rey, Alain, eds. (2007), Le Petit Robert de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
  8. ^ a b Guilbert, Louis; Lagane, René; Niobey, Georges, eds. (1971–1978; 1989), Grand Larousse de la langue française, Paris: Larousse
  9. ^ a b Dictionnaire Le Robert en ligne, dictionnaire.lerobert.com (accessed 2024)

Related etymologies

Cite this entry

“Plongeur.” Etymologically, 14 Nov. 2026, etymologically.com/fr/plongeur. Accessed 15 Nov. 2026.

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