sentinelle

Forms

sentinelle f (plural sentinelles)^[1] Early spelling centinelle (1540).^[2][3]

Etymology

It is borrowed from Italian sentinella, derived from sentire (“to hear, listen”),^[2][3][4][5] from Latin sentiō (“to perceive”).^[3][5][6] The Italian word is recorded in this sense from 1518–1525.^[2]

Littré notes that the derivation from the Italian verb lacks an intermediate step, and reports Galvani's view that the noun was a diminutive of sentina (“bilge”), first the man who watched the bilge; he objected that such a word would have been masculine.^[7]

Cognate with Spanish centinela, which also comes from the Italian word.^[8][7]

Earliest recorded meaning

The TLFi first finds centinelle in 1540, in La Grise's translation of Guevara, meaning a soldier posted to keep watch, and sentinelle in Rabelais's Tiers Livre (1546).^[2][4] Littré quotes an earlier 15th-century line by Basselin: Qu'aller sur ung rempart faire la sentinelle “than to go and keep watch on a rampart”.^[7][5]

Semantic evolution

Besides the sentry himself, the word meant “watch, guard duty” from 1553, a sense surviving only in phrases such as faire la sentinelle (1636), a calque of Italian, faire sentinelle (1668) and sentinelle perdue (1580), a sentry posted in an exposed forward position.^[3][9] En sentinelle (1580) means “on the lookout”, whence mettre quelqu'un en sentinelle (1694).^[3] From 1690 it is also the guard of a public place or a site held by the army.^[3]

By comparison it was used vulgarly for a turd, first in poser une sentinelle (1640) and on its own from 1848.^[3][2] Some authors made the word masculine (1798, Académie).^[3]

Timeline

• 15th century – Littré quotes faire la sentinelle from Basselin.^[7][5]
• 1540 – Centinelle “soldier on watch” in La Grise.^[2]
• 1546 – Rabelais writes sentinelle.^[2][4]
• 1553 – Used for the watch itself.^[3]
• 1580 – Sentinelle perdue and en sentinelle are recorded.^[3]
• 1640 – Oudin records poser une sentinelle in its vulgar sense.^[2][3]
• 1690 – Used of a guard protecting a place.^[3]

Meanings

Noun

1. A soldier who keeps watch or guards a place, a sentry: relever les sentinelles à minuit.^[6][10][11]
2. (in phrases) Watch, guard duty: en sentinelle “on the lookout”, faire sentinelle (dated).^[6][11]
3. (literary) A person or thing that watches to prevent any surprise.^[11]
4. (in apposition) Serving to monitor a situation: médecin sentinelle.^[10]
5. (vulgar, dated) A turd left in the open.^[2][3]

Related words

• sentir
• Italian sentinella

References

1. ^ a b Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f g h i 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 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. ^ a b c Rey-Debove, Josette; Rey, Alain, eds. (2007), Le Petit Robert de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
7. ^ a b c d Littré, Émile (1873–1877), Dictionnaire de la langue française, 4 vols. and supplement, Paris: Hachette
8. ^ Meyer-Lübke, Wilhelm (1935), Romanisches etymologisches Wörterbuch, 3rd ed., Heidelberg: Winter
9. ^ Guilbert, Louis; Lagane, René; Niobey, Georges, eds. (1971–1978; 1989), Grand Larousse de la langue française, Paris: Larousse
10. ^ a b Dictionnaire Le Robert en ligne, dictionnaire.lerobert.com (accessed 2024)
11. ^ a b c Dictionnaire de français Larousse, larousse.fr/dictionnaires/francais (accessed 2024)