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vêtir

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Etymology and origin of the French word vêtir

Confidence
Established
Formation
Inherited
First attested
c. 950, Jonas fragment
Inherited from
Latin vestio via Old French
Ultimate origin
Latin vestis
Etymology tree
inherited borrowed derived
Latin vestio
French vêtir
From the same root
Latin vestimentum ← vestio
Latin vestitus ← vestio

Pronunciation

Forms

vêtir[1] Old French vestir, a spelling still found in the 18th century;[2][3] Monet records vêtir in 1636.[3]

Etymology

It is inherited from Old French vestir, inherited from Latin vestiō (“to clothe; to cover, adorn”), from vestis (“garment, clothing”).[4][2][5][6] The Petit Robert relates the Latin noun to the root of induō (“to put on”) and exuō (“to take off”), and to English wear.[7]

Cognate with Italian vestire, Occitan vestir, Catalan vestir, Spanish vestir and Portuguese vestir.[7][5]

Earliest recorded meaning

It is first found about 950 in the Jonas fragment of Valenciennes, meaning “to put on (a garment)”: vestirent haires, “they put on hair shirts”.[4][8] At the end of the 10th century the Passion of Clermont uses it for clothing someone: de purpure donc lo vestirent, “then they clothed him in purple”.[4][3]

Semantic evolution

The reflexive se vêtir appears about 1145 in Wace, and is now the more usual use of the verb, though habiller is more common.[4][2] About 1210 it also took the sense “to provide (someone) with clothes”, still alive in vêtir ceux qui sont nus.[4][2]

Old and classical French had many senses that later passed to revêtir.[2] In the Chanson de Roland it means “to put (someone) in possession (of a fief)”, a feudal use still found in the 18th century, and être vêtu d'une charge was to hold an office (1690).[2][8] It also meant to take on a role (about 1265, still in Molière), to take the religious habit (about 1340) and to adorn (1373).[2] In 1680 it was used of fitting sails to the arms of a windmill.[2]

Timeline

  • c. 950 – “To put on”, in the Jonas fragment.[4]
  • Late 10th century – “To clothe”, in the Clermont Passion.[4]
  • c. 1080 – The feudal sense “to invest with”, in the Chanson de Roland.[2]
  • c. 1145 – Se vestir, in Wace.[4]
  • c. 1210 – “To provide with clothes”, in Guillaume le Clerc.[4]
  • 1636 – Monet records the spelling vêtir.[3]
  • 1680 – Used of the sails of a windmill.[2]

Meanings

Verb

  1. (literary) To dress, put clothes on someone: vêtir un nourrisson.[7][4]
  2. To provide someone with clothing: vêtir les pauvres.[3][4]
  3. (literary) To put on a garment.[7][3]
  4. Se vêtir: to get dressed: se vêtir chaudement.[7][1]

Word family

Usage notes

The past participle vêtu is used as an adjective, as in court vêtu “in short clothes”.[2]

References

  1. ^ a b c d Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Rey, Alain, ed. (1992), Dictionnaire historique de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
  3. ^ a b c d e f Guilbert, Louis; Lagane, René; Niobey, Georges, eds. (1971–1978; 1989), Grand Larousse de la langue française, Paris: Larousse
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k 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
  5. ^ a b Bloch, Oscar; Wartburg, Walther von (1989), Dictionnaire étymologique de la langue française, 8th ed., Paris: Presses universitaires de France
  6. ^ Wartburg, Walther von, et al. (1922–2002), Französisches Etymologisches Wörterbuch, 25 vols., Bonn / Leipzig / Basel: Klopp / Teubner / Zbinden, p. 14, 351b
  7. ^ a b c d e Rey-Debove, Josette; Rey, Alain, eds. (2007), Le Petit Robert de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
  8. ^ a b Littré, Émile (1873–1877), Dictionnaire de la langue française, 4 vols. and supplement, Paris: Hachette

Related etymologies

Cite this entry

“Vêtir.” Etymologically, 22 Oct. 2026, etymologically.com/fr/v%C3%AAtir. Accessed 22 Oct. 2026.

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