Etymologically
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projet

Etymology and origin of the French word projet

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Confidence
Established
Formation
Back-formation
First attested
c. 1470, Georges Chastellain (pourget)
Ultimate origin
Latin (iactō)

Pronunciation

  • IPA: /pʁɔ.ʒɛ/[1]

Forms

projet m (plural projets)[1] Pourget (about 1470), proiect (1545); projet from 1549 (Robert Estienne).[2][3][4]

Etymology

It is a deverbal noun from projeter.[2][4][3][5] That verb was in the 12th century Old French porjeter (“to throw out, forward”), formed with puer (“forward”) (unstressed por), from Latin porrō (“forward”), and jeter; about 1400 pourgeter meant to reconnoitre (a town), and in the 15th century it took the general sense “to plan”.[5] The modern spelling follows Latin prōiectus (“a throwing forward”), from which Littré and Wiktionary derive the noun.[6][1]

Earliest recorded meaning

Georges Chastellain's chronicle (about 1470) speaks of making maint subtil pourget against someone, an idea put forward and the plan for carrying it out.[2]

Semantic evolution

In 1545 Robert Estienne also has proiect in architecture for a projecting part of a house.[2] Geoffroy Tory (1529) uses it once for the drawing of a building to be built, a sense that returned only in the 19th century (1825).[2] Descartes (1637) uses it for a first draft to be revised, whence projet de décret (1789) and projet de loi “bill” (1792, Robespierre).[2] Avoir des projets sur quelqu'un “to intend to marry someone” is in Desmahis (1750).[2][3]

Timeline

  • c. 1470 – Pourget, Georges Chastellain.[2]
  • 1529 – An architect's plan, Geoffroy Tory.[2]
  • 1549 – The spelling projet, Robert Estienne.[3]
  • 1637 – A first draft, Descartes.[2]
  • 1792 – Projet de loi, Robespierre.[2]
  • 1853 – Avant-projet.[5]

Meanings

Noun

  1. A plan, intention: faire des projets, projets d'avenir, former le projet de partir.[7][1]
  2. A project, undertaking: chef de projet.[1][7]
  3. A first draft: projet de contrat, projet de loi, a bill.[2][1]
  4. (architecture) The plans and drawings of a building to be built.[2][3]

Word family

  • avant-projet
  • projeteur
  • projeter
  • jeter
  • projection
  • Latin prōiectus

References

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

“Projet.” Etymologically, 18 Oct. 2026, etymologically.com/fr/projet. Accessed 18 Oct. 2026.

Last edited on . ·