Etymologically
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promettre

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Pronunciation

  • IPA: /pʁɔ.mɛtʁ/[1]

Forms

promettre[1] Old French prometre, also prametre, promettre from about 1265 (Jean de Meun).[2][3]

Etymology

It is borrowed from Latin prōmittō (“to let go forward; to assure, guarantee; to foretell”), an early borrowing adapted to mettre.[4][5][6][7] The Latin verb is formed of prō- (“forward”) and mittō (“to send”).[5][2] Wiktionary takes it as inherited, through Old French “prometre”.[1]

Cognate with Old Occitan prometre, Spanish prometer and Italian promettere.[3]

Earliest recorded meaning

In the Life of Saint Leger (second half of the 10th century) Peis li promest “he promises him peace”: to commit oneself to something.[4] The Chanson de Roland has the participle pramis.[8][3]

Semantic evolution

French took only the figurative Latin senses.[5] With a thing as subject it meant “to seem to announce” (Eneas, about 1160: sky and sea promise him death), and “to foretell” (about 1220) until prédire took over.[4][5] Used absolutely, “to show great promise”, it is in Amyot (1559), and ironically ça promet! in 1784.[4][5]

Se promettre meant to vow (about 1135), and, from 1538 to count on something; the reciprocal use “to promise each other” is of the 17th century.[4][5] The participle gave terre promise (15th century, again in Pascal), un promis “fiancé” (1538), now regional or ironic, and chose promise, chose due (1694).[4][5]

Timeline

  • Second half of the 10th century – Promest, Life of Saint Leger.[4]
  • c. 1100 – Pramis, Chanson de Roland.[3]
  • c. 1160 – “To seem to announce”, Eneas.[4]
  • 1538 – Promis “fiancé”.[4]
  • 1559 – Absolute “to show promise”, Amyot.[4]
  • 1784 – Ça promet!.[4]

Meanings

Verb

  1. To promise: promettre son aide, promettre de venir, il m'a promis qu'il viendrait.[9][1]
  2. To assure, assert: je te le promets.[9]
  3. To give hope of, foreshadow: le temps promet de la pluie, (absolutely) to be promising, ça promet! (ironic).[4][1]
  4. Se promettre: to resolve; to look forward to: se promettre du plaisir.[1][4]
  5. Promettre monts et merveilles: to promise the earth.[3][1]

Word family

  • promesse
  • prometteur
  • promis

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b Guilbert, Louis; Lagane, René; Niobey, Georges, eds. (1971–1978; 1989), Grand Larousse de la langue française, Paris: Larousse
  3. ^ a b c d e Littré, Émile (1873–1877), Dictionnaire de la langue française, 4 vols. and supplement, Paris: Hachette
  4. ^ 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
  5. ^ a b c d e f g Rey, Alain, ed. (1992), Dictionnaire historique de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
  6. ^ Rey, Alain, ed. (2005), Le Grand Robert de la langue française, electronic version, Paris: Le Robert
  7. ^ Wartburg, Walther von, et al. (1922–2002), Französisches Etymologisches Wörterbuch, 25 vols., Bonn / Leipzig / Basel: Klopp / Teubner / Zbinden, p. 9, 441a
  8. ^ Bloch, Oscar; Wartburg, Walther von (1989), Dictionnaire étymologique de la langue française, 8th ed., Paris: Presses universitaires de France
  9. ^ a b Rey-Debove, Josette; Rey, Alain, eds. (2007), Le Petit Robert de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert