tancer

Forms

tancer^[1] Old French tencier, tencer, Picard tenchier; the spelling tancier appears in the 12th century.^[2][3][4]

Etymology

It is inherited from Old French tencier, inherited from Vulgar Latin *tentiō, formed on Latin tentus, the past participle of tendō (“to stretch, strive”).^{[3][2][4][1][5]} Bloch and Wartburg and Rey explain the senses as a passage from striving to fighting, then to quarrelling and finally to scolding.^[4][2] Some derive the Vulgar Latin verb instead from tentō (“to try, attack”), the frequentative of the same verb.^[4][2] Littré, writing earlier, took it from the participle of teneō.^[6]

The verb is only Gallo-Romance: Old Occitan tensar corresponds to it, while the noun tenson, a quarrel, goes back to a related Vulgar Latin noun.^[4][2]

Earliest recorded meaning

In the Chanson de Roland (about 1100) tencier a aucun means “to abuse, insult someone”;^[3] Littré glosses the Roland's tencent à lui as “they rebuke him”.^[6]

Semantic evolution

In Old French the verb was intransitive, “to make reproaches, quarrel” (about 1150, Charroi de Nîmes),^[7] and the reflexive se tenchier meant “to quarrel with each other”.^[6] The transitive use “to insult, scold, reprimand” appears in the second half of the 13th century as tenchier.^[3][7] Littré says the verb was once used in high and ordinary style alike but had become familiar,^[6] while the TLFi and the Petit Robert now label it literary.^[3][8] It is most common in tancer vertement.^[2] It has no derivatives.^[2]

Timeline

• c. 1100 – Tencier a aucun “to abuse someone” in the Chanson de Roland.^[3]
• c. 1150 – Intransitive tencier “to make reproaches” in the Charroi de Nîmes.^[7]
• c. 1170 – The spelling tancier in Chrétien de Troyes's Erec.^[3]
• c. 1265 – Jean de Meun writes tancer.^[7]
• 2nd half of the 13th century – Transitive tenchier “to scold” in Gaufrey.^[3]
• c. 1460 – Villon writes tancer.^[7]

Meanings

Verb

1. (literary, transitive) To scold, reprimand: tancer vertement, elle tança son neveu pour son retard.^[3][8][2]
2. Se tancer (reflexive): to reproach oneself.^[6]

Related words

• tenson
• tendre¹

Usage notes

La Fontaine used the Picard form tencher in a rhyme he presents as a Picard saying (Fables IV, 16).^[4][6]

References

1. ^ a b c Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f g h Rey, Alain, ed. (1992), Dictionnaire historique de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
3. ^ 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
4. ^ a b c d e f Bloch, Oscar; Wartburg, Walther von (1989), Dictionnaire étymologique de la langue française, 8th ed., Paris: Presses universitaires de France
5. ^ Wartburg, Walther von, et al. (1922–2002), Französisches Etymologisches Wörterbuch, 25 vols., Bonn / Leipzig / Basel: Klopp / Teubner / Zbinden, p. 13/1, 228a
6. ^ a b c d e f Littré, Émile (1873–1877), Dictionnaire de la langue française, 4 vols. and supplement, Paris: Hachette
7. ^ a b c d e Guilbert, Louis; Lagane, René; Niobey, Georges, eds. (1971–1978; 1989), Grand Larousse de la langue française, Paris: Larousse
8. ^ a b Rey-Debove, Josette; Rey, Alain, eds. (2007), Le Petit Robert de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert