respirer

Pronunciation

• IPA: /ʁɛs.pi.ʁe/^[1]

Forms

respirer^[1]

Etymology

It is borrowed from Latin respīrō (“to breathe out, exhale; to recover one's breath; to rest”).^{[2][3][4][5][6][1]} The Latin verb is from re- (“back”) and spīrō (“to breathe”) (see esprit, spirituel).^[3][7] The earliest French use, “to come back to life”, shows the attraction of “esprit” “breath, life”, as Paul Zumthor noted.^[5][3] The pronounced ⟨s⟩ is probably due to “esprit” or restored after the Latin.^[3] In the south of France the word did not everywhere replace the outcomes of popular Latin “*alenare” (see haleine), and here and there it gave way to outcomes of pulsō.^[3]

Compare Old Occitan respirar, Spanish respirar and Italian respirare.^[7]

Earliest recorded meaning

In the Sermons of Saint Bernard (end of the 12th century) respirer de qqc. is to come back to life after enduring something painful.^[2][3]

Semantic evolution

The physiological sense, to draw air into the chest and let it out, is in Guillaume le Clerc (1210–30).^[2] In the 13th century it meant to have a respite, perhaps under the influence of répit, and also to show itself, “to give off (a smell)” is from about 1300, and figuratively “to radiate, bespeak” from about 1585.^[3][2] In 1601 Montchrestien used it for “to be alive” and “to long for”, and Corneille (1640) for regaining one's composure after an ordeal.^[2] Valmont de Bomare (1768) applied it to plants.^[2] In Berry a soil that lets in air is said to respirer.^[7]

Timeline

• late 12th century – To revive, Sermons de saint Bernard.^[2]
• 1210–30 – To breathe, Guillaume le Clerc.^[2]
• c. 1300 – To give off a smell.^[2]
• 15th century – Respiration.^[4]
• 1601 – To be alive, Montchrestien.^[2]
• 1640 – To have respite, Corneille.^[2]
• 1768 – Of plants.^[2]

Meanings

Verb

1. To breathe: respirer par le nez, respirer profondément.^[5][1]
2. To breathe in, inhale: respirer l'air frais, respirer un parfum.^[5][2]
3. To get one's breath back; to have a respite, relax: laissez-moi respirer.^[2][3]
4. (literary) To be alive.^[2][8]
5. To radiate, exude: il respire la santé.^[3][9]

Word family

• respirable
• irrespirable
• respiratoire
• respirateur
• respir

Related words

• respiration
• esprit
• aspirer
• inspirer
• expirer
• haleine

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 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 Rey, Alain, ed. (1992), Dictionnaire historique de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
4. ^ a b Bloch, Oscar; Wartburg, Walther von (1989), Dictionnaire étymologique de la langue française, 8th ed., Paris: Presses universitaires de France
5. ^ a b c d Rey, Alain, ed. (2005), Le Grand Robert de la langue française, electronic version, Paris: Le Robert
6. ^ Wartburg, Walther von, et al. (1922–2002), Französisches Etymologisches Wörterbuch, 25 vols., Bonn / Leipzig / Basel: Klopp / Teubner / Zbinden, p. 10, 308a
7. ^ a b c Littré, Émile (1873–1877), Dictionnaire de la langue française, 4 vols. and supplement, Paris: Hachette
8. ^ Guilbert, Louis; Lagane, René; Niobey, Georges, eds. (1971–1978; 1989), Grand Larousse de la langue française, Paris: Larousse
9. ^ Rey-Debove, Josette; Rey, Alain, eds. (2007), Le Petit Robert de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert