Etymologically
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tu

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Pronunciation

  • IPA: /ty/[1]
  • IPA: [t͡ʃy][1]
  • IPA (Quebec): [t͡sy][1]
  • IPA (Quebec): [t͡sʏ][1]

Forms

tu (second person informal singular, plural vous, object te, emphatic toi, possessive determiner ton)[1]

Etymology

It is inherited from Old French tu, inherited from Latin tū (“you (singular)”), in the nominative and vocative.[2][3][4] The Latin pronoun is an Indo-European word, found in Old Church Slavonic ты (ty), Old High German du, Old Armenian դու (du) and Ancient Greek τύ (tú), Wiktionary traces it to Proto-Italic *tū, from Proto-Indo-European *túh₂.[4][1] The stressed toi comes from the accusative tē.[5]

Cognate with Italian tu, Spanish tú and Old Occitan tu.[6][5]

Earliest recorded meaning

It is first found in the Jonas fragment (937–952), with stress and contrast: tu doles super edera… e jo ne dolreie “you grieve over the ivy … and I would not grieve”.[7]

Semantic evolution

In Old French tu was a stressed pronoun used for emphasis, and could be left out, a usage that survives in old phrases and proverbs; it was sometimes used where modern French has toi.[7][4] In northern France it has been since the 16th century merely a prefix marking the second person singular of verbs, while elsewhere it remained stressed.[6]

It has been used as a noun since 1771, especially in être à tu et à toi avec qqn “to be on very familiar terms” (1835), earlier de tu à toi (1798).[4][8] tutoyer “to address someone as tu” dates from 1393, replacing tutoiser (1280–90), and tutoiement from 1690.[4] Bloch and Wartburg date tutoyer to 1394.[6]

Timeline

  • 937–952 – Tu in the Jonas fragment.[7]
  • 1280–90 – Tutoiser “to say tu to”.[4]
  • 1393 – Tutoyer.[4]
  • 16th century – Tu becomes a mere verbal prefix in northern French.[6]
  • 1771 – Tu used as a noun.[4][8]
  • 1835 – Être à tu et à toi is recorded by the Académie.[8]

Meanings

Pronoun

  1. you: second person singular subject pronoun, used to someone one knows well, a child or a social equal, and in prayer.[3][1][8]
  2. (familiar) Elided t' before a vowel: t'as raison.[3][7]

Noun

  1. The word tu, dire tu à qqn, to address someone as tu.[8]

Word family

  • tutoyer
  • tutoiement

Usage notes

Tu is used only with people one is familiar with; otherwise the polite vous is used.[8] In Quebec informal speech, tu (from t-il) is also a question particle after the verb (c'est-tu vrai ?).[1]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ Rey, Alain, ed. (2005), Le Grand Robert de la langue française, electronic version, Paris: Le Robert
  3. ^ a b c Rey-Debove, Josette; Rey, Alain, eds. (2007), Le Petit Robert de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h Rey, Alain, ed. (1992), Dictionnaire historique de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
  5. ^ a b Littré, Émile (1873–1877), Dictionnaire de la langue française, 4 vols. and supplement, Paris: Hachette
  6. ^ a b c d Bloch, Oscar; Wartburg, Walther von (1989), Dictionnaire étymologique de la langue française, 8th ed., Paris: Presses universitaires de France
  7. ^ a b c d 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
  8. ^ a b c d e f Guilbert, Louis; Lagane, René; Niobey, Georges, eds. (1971–1978; 1989), Grand Larousse de la langue française, Paris: Larousse