ridicule

Pronunciation

• IPA: /ʁi.di.kyl/^[1]

Forms

ridicule (plural ridicules)^[1]

Etymology

It is borrowed from Latin rīdiculus (“laughable; funny, droll; absurd”),^{[2][3][4][5][6][1]} from rīdeō (“to laugh”) (see rire).^[3][5] The Latin word was used both in a good sense, “amusing, meant to make people laugh”, and in a bad one, “laughable, absurd”.^[2][3] It drove out two Middle French words of the same family, ridiculaire and ridiculeux (both 15th century).^[2]

Earliest recorded meaning

The French Terence printed in 1500–03 uses the noun for something that provokes laughter: Tous tes ditz ne sont que fallaces ridiculles “all your words are only laughable deceits”, Octavien de Saint-Gelais's Eneide (before 1502) has the adjective, choses vaines et ridicules.^[2]

Semantic evolution

Compared with risible, the word kept only the pejorative value, “exciting mockery”, and lost the sense “amusing on purpose” after La Bruyère (before 1696).^[3][7] Montaigne uses it of a person, se rendre ridicule (1580), and impersonally, il est ridicule que (1588); in the 19th century (Goncourt, 1865) it came to mean “insignificant, paltry”, especially of a sum of money.^[2][3]

As a noun, le ridicule is the laughable side of a person or thing (before 1654, Molière, 1663) and un ridicule a foible that invites mockery, tourner en ridicule (Pascal, 1657–59) and se donner le ridicule de (1747) are still in use.^[3][2] The verb ridiculiser (before 1648) had trouble establishing itself in the 17th century.^[3]

Timeline

• 1500–03 – The noun, French Terence.^[2]
• Before 1502 – The adjective, Octavien de Saint-Gelais.^[2]
• 1552 – ridiculement.^[3]
• 1580 – Se rendre ridicule, Montaigne.^[2]
• Before 1648 – ridiculiser.^[3]
• 1657 – Tourner en ridicule, Pascal.^[3]
• 1747 – Se donner le ridicule de.^[3]
• 1865 – “Paltry”, of a sum, the Goncourts.^[2]

Meanings

Adjective

1. ridiculous, laughable; that invites mockery: se sentir ridicule, Les Précieuses ridicules.^[8][1]
2. Absurd, unreasonable: une prétention ridicule, il est ridicule de.^[8][2]
3. Paltry, derisory: une somme ridicule.^[2][3]

Noun

1. Le ridicule: ridiculousness, the laughable side of something; ridicule: tourner en ridicule, le ridicule ne tue pas.^[8][3]
2. Un ridicule: a laughable trait or habit: les ridicules de quelqu'un.^[3]

Word family

• ridiculement
• ridiculiser
• ridiculité

Related words

• rire
• risible
• dérisoire

Usage notes

Another ridicule was the name of a small lady's handbag about 1800 (recorded 1798–99), a popular alteration of réticule, borrowed at the same time from Latin rēticulum (“little net”); from the early 20th century réticule was again the normal form, and ridicule was said only as a joke.^[4][5][9]

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 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 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 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, 400b
7. ^ Guilbert, Louis; Lagane, René; Niobey, Georges, eds. (1971–1978; 1989), Grand Larousse de la langue française, Paris: Larousse
8. ^ a b c Rey-Debove, Josette; Rey, Alain, eds. (2007), Le Petit Robert de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
9. ^ Quemada, Bernard, ed. (1959–2006), Datations et documents lexicographiques (Base historique du vocabulaire français, BHVF), Paris: Klincksieck / CNRS / Champion; ATILF