Etymologically
Log in

rouler

This is the current revision of this entry, as edited by bogdan on 18 October 2026 at 14:02. This address is a permanent link to this version.
Changes in this edit History

Pronunciation

  • IPA: /ʁu.le/[1]

Forms

rouler[1] Old French rëoller (about 1160), rueler, roeler, roueler, roler, rouler from the 14th century.[2][3][4]

Etymology

It is from Old French roele (“small wheel”), also “ruele”, the old form of rouelle, and in some senses from rôle “roll”; the GLLF finds the distinction often specious.[3][5][4][6][7] “Roele” continues Late Latin rotella (“small wheel”), a diminutive of Latin rota (“wheel”).[8][5] The verb was also confused with the descendants of a popular Latin Vulgar Latin *rotulō, from rotula (see rotule), attested by Old Occitan rollar (about 1300) “to turn about an axis”.[3][5][9] Littré and Wiktionary derive the verb from the Medieval Latin form.[10][1]

Littré compared Walloon rôlé, Catalan rotolar, Spanish rollar, Portuguese rolar and Italian rotolare.[10]

Earliest recorded meaning

The verb is first intransitive: in the Roman d'Eneas (about 1160) rëoller is to move by turning over and over; the transitive “to move (an object) by making it turn” is in the Livre des Rois (about 1170).[2][3]

Semantic evolution

Rouler les yeux is found at the end of the 12th century.[3][4] After rotulare, it came to mean to wind into a roll (1553), as in rouler une cigarette (1854).[3] A vehicle roule from 1585, and a person travelling in one from 1611 (il fait beau rouler en esté, Cotgrave), whence faire rouler un carrosse (1690) and rouler carrosse (1709), to live in style, rouler sur l'or is Voltaire's (1736).[2][3] Thunder roule in 1604, a ship rolls in 1678, money circulates (1685), and a matter roule sur a subject (1660).[2]

In the 19th century it took the familiar sense “to cheat, swindle” (1834), with rouler dans la farine (1867).[3] Rouler sa bosse (1816) followed rouler son corps “to travel a lot” (1781), and rouler les r is dated 1845, ça roule “it's going fine” is in the Goncourts' Journal (1859).[3][2]

Timeline

  • c. 1160 – Rëoller in the Roman d'Eneas.[2]
  • c. 1170 – Transitive rueler, in the Livre des Rois.[2]
  • 1409 – The form roller.[2]
  • 1553 – “To roll up”, in Jean Gérard's Bible.[2]
  • 1585 – Of a cart moving on wheels, Noël du Fail.[2]
  • 1709 – Rouler carrosse, Lesage.[2]
  • 1736 – Rouler sur l'or, Voltaire.[2]
  • 1834 – “To cheat”.[3]
  • 1859 – Ça roule.[2]

Meanings

Verb

  1. (transitive) To roll, move (something round) by turning it over: rouler un tonneau, rouler sa bosse, to knock about the world.[6][11]
  2. (transitive) To push along (something on wheels): rouler une brouette.[6]
  3. (transitive) To roll up, wind into a roll: rouler un tapis, une cigarette.[5][3]
  4. (transitive) To coat by rolling: rouler dans la farine, and (familiar) to fool, swindle.[6][3][1]
  5. (intransitive) To roll, move by turning over; of a vehicle or its driver, to run, drive: rouler à droite.[12][1]
  6. (intransitive) Of a ship, to roll; of thunder, to rumble.[2]
  7. (familiar) Ça roule: things are going well.[2][1]
  8. Se rouler: to roll about: se rouler par terre, se rouler les pouces, to twiddle one's thumbs.[3][1]

Word family

  • roulant
  • roulement
  • roulette
  • rouleur
  • roulis
  • roulotte
  • roulade
  • roulage
  • roulier
  • dérouler
  • enrouler
  • rouelle
  • rôle
  • rouleau
  • roue
  • rotule

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g 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 j k l m Rey, Alain, ed. (1992), Dictionnaire historique de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
  4. ^ a b c Guilbert, Louis; Lagane, René; Niobey, Georges, eds. (1971–1978; 1989), Grand Larousse de la langue française, Paris: Larousse
  5. ^ a b c d Rey, Alain, ed. (2005), Le Grand Robert de la langue française, electronic version, Paris: Le Robert
  6. ^ a b c d Rey-Debove, Josette; Rey, Alain, eds. (2007), Le Petit Robert de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
  7. ^ Wartburg, Walther von, et al. (1922–2002), Französisches Etymologisches Wörterbuch, 25 vols., Bonn / Leipzig / Basel: Klopp / Teubner / Zbinden, p. 10, 500b
  8. ^ Bloch, Oscar; Wartburg, Walther von (1989), Dictionnaire étymologique de la langue française, 8th ed., Paris: Presses universitaires de France
  9. ^ Wartburg, Walther von, et al. (1922–2002), Französisches Etymologisches Wörterbuch, 25 vols., Bonn / Leipzig / Basel: Klopp / Teubner / Zbinden, p. 10, 510b
  10. ^ a b Littré, Émile (1873–1877), Dictionnaire de la langue française, 4 vols. and supplement, Paris: Hachette
  11. ^ Dictionnaire Le Robert en ligne, dictionnaire.lerobert.com (accessed 2024)
  12. ^ Dictionnaire de français Larousse, larousse.fr/dictionnaires/francais (accessed 2024)