Etymologically
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terrible

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Pronunciation

  • IPA: /tɛ.ʁibl/[1]
  • IPA: /te.ʁibl/[1]

Forms

terrible (plural terribles)[1]

Etymology

It is borrowed from Latin terribilis (“frightening, dreadful, (Late Latin) venerable”), from terreō (“to frighten”) (see terreur).[2][3][4][5][6][1] In the Code of Justinian (6th century) the Latin word meant “venerable”.[2]

Compare Old Occitan terrible, Spanish terrible, Portuguese terrível and Italian terribile.[7]

Earliest recorded meaning

The Roman d'Eneas (about 1160; about 1130 according to Rey and the GLLF) has mostres terribles “terrifying monsters”.[2][3][5]

Semantic evolution

Borrowed by the literary language in the strong Latin sense, it has been much weakened since the end of the 16th century.[3] Montaigne (1580) uses it for extreme intensity, La Noue (1587) of people, and Montaigne again (1588) for something remarkable of its kind (une terrible estandue), a vague superlative much used by the précieux.[2][3] La Fontaine (1669) uses le terrible as a noun for the terror aroused by tragedy.[2] Molière has femme terrible (1672) and Furetière, approvingly, un terrible homme (1690); Les Enfants terribles is a title of 1841.[2] Recently it has been revived as an intensive, “great, terrific”, and pas terrible means mediocre.[3][1]

Timeline

  • c. 1160 – Mostres terribles, Eneas.[2]
  • 1580 – Of extreme intensity, Montaigne.[2]
  • 1587 – Of people, La Noue.[2]
  • 1669 – Le terrible, in tragedy, La Fontaine.[2]
  • 1672 – Femme terrible, Molière.[2]
  • 1841 – Les Enfants terribles.[2]

Meanings

Adjective

  1. terrible, dreadful, frightening: un cri terrible, une terrible catastrophe.[5][2]
  2. Extreme, tremendous: un vent terrible, une peur terrible.[2][3]
  3. Unbearable, very trying: un enfant terrible.[5]
  4. (familiar) Great, terrific: c'est un film terrible, pas terrible, not great, mediocre.[1][3]

Word family

  • terriblement

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n 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 Rey, Alain, ed. (1992), Dictionnaire historique de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
  4. ^ Rey, Alain, ed. (2005), Le Grand Robert de la langue française, electronic version, Paris: Le Robert
  5. ^ a b c d Guilbert, Louis; Lagane, René; Niobey, Georges, eds. (1971–1978; 1989), Grand Larousse de la langue française, Paris: Larousse
  6. ^ Wartburg, Walther von, et al. (1922–2002), Französisches Etymologisches Wörterbuch, 25 vols., Bonn / Leipzig / Basel: Klopp / Teubner / Zbinden, p. 13/1, 263a
  7. ^ Littré, Émile (1873–1877), Dictionnaire de la langue française, 4 vols. and supplement, Paris: Hachette