utile

Pronunciation

• IPA: /y.til/^[1]

Forms

utile (plural utiles)^[1] Old French utele (about 1120), utle (late 12th century); utile from 1260.^[2][3][4]

Etymology

It is a semi-learned borrowing, borrowed from Latin ūtilis (“useful, advantageous”), derived from ūtor (“to use”), the source of user.^[2][3][5] Littré notes that utle, with the stress of the Latin on the first syllable, was the correct old form and that the modern form was remade on the Latin.^[6] Cognate with Old Occitan util, Spanish útil and Italian utile.^[6]

Earliest recorded meaning

In the Livre des Rois David is called utle e profitable à mun os; the form utile appears in a charter of 1260, of what is advantageous to someone.^[6][7]

Semantic evolution

Rather rare in Old French, the word first described what serves a purpose or can be of advantage.^[2][8] In law it qualified land of which one has the usufruct (1507) and, in seigneur utile (1508), the lord who drew its revenue; both are now obsolete.^[2][7] The basic sense of practical advantage became common in classical French.^[2]

From 1637 (Descartes) it was applied to people, as in se rendre utile; the noun l'utile is in d'Aubigné (1616).^[2][7] In law jours utiles (1718) are the days during which a step can still be taken, whence en temps utile (1835).^[2][7] The adverbial voter utile, to vote tactically, appears in the mid-20th century.^[2] The verb utiliser dates from 1792.^[8]

Timeline

• c. 1120 – Utele in the Oxford Psalter.^[3]
• 1260 – Utile in a Liège charter.^[7]
• 1508 – Seigneur utile.^[7]
• 1616 – The noun l'utile in d'Aubigné.^[7][2]
• 1637 – Descartes: of a person.^[7]
• 1792 – The verb utiliser.^[8]
• 1835 – En temps utile.^[7][2]

Meanings

Adjective

1. Useful, serving a need, advantageous: d'utiles conseils, il est utile de….^[9][1]
2. Of a person, helpful: se rendre utile.^[9][2]
3. En temps utile: in good time, within the time allowed.^[9][2]
4. (familiar, adverb) Voter utile: to vote tactically.^[2]

Noun

1. L'utile: what is useful: joindre l'utile à l'agréable.^[9]

Word family

• utiliser

Related words

• user
• utilité
• inutile
• Latin ūtilis

References

1. ^ a b c Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ 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
3. ^ a b c Guilbert, Louis; Lagane, René; Niobey, Georges, eds. (1971–1978; 1989), Grand Larousse de la langue française, Paris: Larousse
4. ^ Rey, Alain, ed. (2005), Le Grand Robert de la langue française, electronic version, Paris: Le Robert
5. ^ Wartburg, Walther von, et al. (1922–2002), Französisches Etymologisches Wörterbuch, 25 vols., Bonn / Leipzig / Basel: Klopp / Teubner / Zbinden, p. 14, 89b
6. ^ a b c Littré, Émile (1873–1877), Dictionnaire de la langue française, 4 vols. and supplement, Paris: Hachette
7. ^ 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
8. ^ a b c Bloch, Oscar; Wartburg, Walther von (1989), Dictionnaire étymologique de la langue française, 8th ed., Paris: Presses universitaires de France
9. ^ a b c d Rey-Debove, Josette; Rey, Alain, eds. (2007), Le Petit Robert de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert