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regarder

Etymology and origin of the French word regarder

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Confidence
Established
Formation
Derivation
First attested
8th century, Reichenau Glosses
Ultimate origin
Frankish (*wardōn)

Pronunciation

  • IPA: /ʁə.ɡaʁ.de/[1]
  • IPA: /ʁɡaʁ.de/[1]

Forms

regarder[1]

Etymology

It is formed from Old French re- + garder, garder having the old sense “to watch, look at”; the prefix marks both a movement back and repetition.[2][3][4][5] The Reichenau Glosses (8th century) already render Latin “respectant” “they look back” by “reuuardant”.[2][6] Old French also had “reswarder” (about 980) and “resgarder” (about 1175), formed from the verb esgarder (“to look at, watch over”) (see égard), and other derivatives of “garder” such as agarder, “regarder” replaced them all.[3][7]

“Garder” comes from the Germanic verb Frankish *wardōn, related to German warten and English ward.[8][9] Cognate with Italian riguardare and Occitan regardar.[7]

Earliest recorded meaning

It is first found in a full text about 1100 in the Chanson de Roland, meaning “to direct one's gaze at”: Quant l'ot li reis, fierement le regarde “when the king heard it, he looked at him fiercely”.[2][7]

Semantic evolution

Already in Old French the verb took an intellectual and moral sense, “to pay heed to, take into account”, first as regarder à (first half of the 12th century) and then transitively (1188).[2][3] With a thing as subject it meant “to concern” (late 12th century), and of a building “to face” (1329).[2][3] Regarder comme “to consider as” (1642) displaced regarder en and regarder pour.[3]

Many phrases describe the look: regarder quelqu'un en face (late 15th century), de haut en bas (1690), de travers (1671), sous le nez (1690); regarder à la dépense “to be careful with money” (1559) explains the adjective regardant.[3][10] Belgian French says regarder après for “to look after”.[3] The reflexive meant “to look around oneself” about 1118, then “to look at oneself in a mirror” (about 1480) and, reciprocally, “to look at one another” (1690).[2][3]

Timeline

  • 8th century – Reuuardant in the Reichenau Glosses.[2]
  • c. 1100 – “To look at” in the Chanson de Roland.[2]
  • c. 1120 – Regarder à “to pay attention to”.[2][3]
  • Late 12th century – “To concern”.[2]
  • 1329 – Of a building, “to face”.[2]
  • c. 1480 – Se regarder in a mirror, in Coquillart.[2]
  • 1531 – Regardez-y à deux fois in Robert Estienne's dictionary.[11]
  • 1642 – Regarder comme “to consider as”.[3]
  • 1671 – Regarder de travers.[3][10]

Meanings

Verb

  1. To look at, direct one's eyes at: regarder le paysage, regarder par la fenêtre.[4][12]
  2. To watch (a show, a film, television).[4][1]
  3. To consider, examine: regarder les choses en face.[3][13]
  4. Regarder comme: to regard as, consider to be.[3]
  5. Of a matter: to concern: Ça ne te regarde pas.[3][1]
  6. Of a building: to face, look onto: une maison qui regarde la mer.[2][1]
  7. Regarder à: to pay attention to, be careful about: regarder à la dépense.[12][3]
  8. Se regarder: to look at oneself, or at one another.[2]

Word family

  • regard
  • regardant
  • garder
  • égard

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 n 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 f g h i j k l m n o Rey, Alain, ed. (1992), Dictionnaire historique de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
  4. ^ a b c Rey-Debove, Josette; Rey, Alain, eds. (2007), Le Petit Robert de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
  5. ^ Wartburg, Walther von, et al. (1922–2002), Französisches Etymologisches Wörterbuch, 25 vols., Bonn / Leipzig / Basel: Klopp / Teubner / Zbinden, p. 17, 510a
  6. ^ Rey, Alain, ed. (2005), Le Grand Robert de la langue française, electronic version, Paris: Le Robert
  7. ^ a b c Littré, Émile (1873–1877), Dictionnaire de la langue française, 4 vols. and supplement, Paris: Hachette
  8. ^ Bloch, Oscar; Wartburg, Walther von (1989), Dictionnaire étymologique de la langue française, 8th ed., Paris: Presses universitaires de France
  9. ^ Meyer-Lübke, Wilhelm (1935), Romanisches etymologisches Wörterbuch, 3rd ed., Heidelberg: Winter
  10. ^ a b Guilbert, Louis; Lagane, René; Niobey, Georges, eds. (1971–1978; 1989), Grand Larousse de la langue française, Paris: Larousse
  11. ^ Quemada, Bernard, ed. (1959–2006), Datations et documents lexicographiques (Base historique du vocabulaire français, BHVF), Paris: Klincksieck / CNRS / Champion; ATILF
  12. ^ a b Dictionnaire de français Larousse, larousse.fr/dictionnaires/francais (accessed 2024)
  13. ^ Dictionnaire Le Robert en ligne, dictionnaire.lerobert.com (accessed 2024)
Cite this entry

“Regarder.” Etymologically, 18 Oct. 2026, etymologically.com/fr/regarder. Accessed 18 Oct. 2026.

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