Etymologically
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trembler

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Pronunciation

  • IPA: /tʁɑ̃.ble/[1]

Forms

trembler[1] Old French trembler, trambler.[1][2]

Etymology

It is inherited from Old French trembler, inherited from Vulgar Latin *tremulāre,[3][4][5][6][7] from tremulus (“trembling”), from tremō (“to tremble; to fear”).[3][4][6] The derived verb was preferred to the classical one as more expressive;[4][5] the classical verb itself survived in French in an altered form, craindre, and in Old Occitan tremer.[4][5] Rey traces it to an Indo-European root expressing repeated movement, seen in terror and, extended, in Ancient Greek τρέμω (trémō, “to tremble”).[4] The learned trémuler is its doublet.[1]

Cognate with Italian tremolare, Old Occitan tremblar and Spanish temblar.[5][2]

Earliest recorded meaning

The Oxford Psalter (early 12th century) has it both for fear, de qui tremblerai-je ? “of whom shall I be afraid?”, and for physical shaking: iluec tremblerent de pour “there they trembled with fear”, et tremblat la terre “and the earth shook”.[3]

Semantic evolution

The physical sense, “to be shaken by small involuntary movements”, was soon said of the voice (Hue de Rotelande, about 1180) and, by analogy, of things moved more or less violently, as by an earthquake (Villehardouin, about 1207).[3][4][8] Diderot (1767) uses it of a flickering light.[4][8] As in Latin, it also means “to be afraid”, notably in faire trembler quelqu'un (1382); it is built with de from 1549 and with que from 1694.[4][8] The comparison trembler comme une feuille (1935) continues trembler comme la feuille (1649), earlier comme la feuille en l'arbre (15th century).[4]

trembleur was coined in 1657 to translate English quaker.[5]

Timeline

  • c. 1120 – Of fear and of physical shaking, Oxford Psalter.[3][4]
  • c. 1180 – Of a quavering voice.[3]
  • 13th century – The derivative tremblement.[5]
  • 1382 – Faire trembler.[4]
  • 1549 – Trembler de, Du Bellay.[8]
  • 1657 – trembleur for “quaker”.[5]
  • 1767 – Of a flickering light, Diderot.[4]
  • 1935 – Trembler comme une feuille.[4]

Meanings

Verb

  1. To tremble, shake with small involuntary movements: trembler de froid, de fièvre, trembler comme une feuille.[9][1]
  2. Of the voice, to quaver.[3][4]
  3. Of things, to shake, be shaken: la terre a tremblé; of light, to flicker.[3][4]
  4. To be afraid, fear: trembler pour quelqu'un, faire trembler, to terrify.[9][4]

Word family

  • tremblement
  • tremblant
  • trembleur
  • trembloter

References

  1. ^ a b c d e Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b Littré, Émile (1873–1877), Dictionnaire de la langue française, 4 vols. and supplement, Paris: Hachette
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h 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 g h i j k l m n o p Rey, Alain, ed. (1992), Dictionnaire historique de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
  5. ^ a b c d e f g Bloch, Oscar; Wartburg, Walther von (1989), Dictionnaire étymologique de la langue française, 8th ed., Paris: Presses universitaires de France
  6. ^ a b Rey, Alain, ed. (2005), Le Grand Robert de la langue française, electronic version, Paris: Le Robert
  7. ^ Wartburg, Walther von, et al. (1922–2002), Französisches Etymologisches Wörterbuch, 25 vols., Bonn / Leipzig / Basel: Klopp / Teubner / Zbinden, p. 13/2, 241a
  8. ^ a b c d Guilbert, Louis; Lagane, René; Niobey, Georges, eds. (1971–1978; 1989), Grand Larousse de la langue française, Paris: Larousse
  9. ^ a b Rey-Debove, Josette; Rey, Alain, eds. (2007), Le Petit Robert de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert