vaincre

Forms

vaincre^[1] Old French veintre, later vaincre (about 1130), beside the forms in -ir vainkir (about 1190) and vainquir (about 1370).^[2][3]

Etymology

It is inherited from Old French veintre, inherited from Latin vincō (“to conquer, win”).^[3][2][4][5] The modern form brought back the /k/ sound of the Latin, as did vainkir, and it ousted the others during the 15th century;^[2] Wiktionary puts the modern pronunciation down to the influence of the Latin first person singular.^[1] Rey connects the Latin verb with Old English wīgan (“to fight”) through a root meaning “to fight”;^[2] Wiktionary gives Proto-Indo-European *weyk- (“to overcome”).^[1]

Cognate with Romanian învinge, Italian vincere, Occitan vencer, Catalan vèncer, Spanish vencer and Portuguese vencer.^[6][7]

Earliest recorded meaning

It is first found as veintre in the Cantilène de sainte Eulalie (late 9th century): the enemies of God wanted to overcome her, Voldrent la veintre li Deo inimi.^[3][2]

Semantic evolution

The first sense, “to bring someone round, persuade”, lasted into the 17th century (se laisser vaincre, Corneille) and was later taken over by convaincre.^[2] From about 980 the verb meant to get the upper hand in a fight, and in the Chanson de Roland it means to defeat an enemy in arms.^[2][3]

The later figurative uses rest on the idea of overcoming by a struggle: to be stronger than a natural force (1176–84), to master a passion (about 1276), to remove an obstacle (about 1357).^[3][2] The reflexive se vaincre “to master oneself” is in Charron in 1601.^[3] The English verb vanquish goes back to a past form of veintre.^[6]

Timeline

• c. 880 – Veintre appears in the Cantilène de sainte Eulalie.^[3][2]
• late 10th century – The Passion uses it of Christ's victory.^[3]
• c. 1100 – The Chanson de Roland uses it of defeating an enemy.^[3]
• c. 1130 – The form vaincre is found, in Wace.^[3][2]
• 1176–84 – Gautier d'Arras uses it of overcoming a force.^[3]
• 15th century – Vaincre ousts the other forms.^[2]
• 1601 – Charron uses se vaincre soi-même.^[3]

Meanings

Verb

1. To defeat an enemy, an army or a country in arms: vaincre l'ennemi.^[6][8]
2. To beat someone in a contest or competition; used absolutely, to win.^[6][1]
3. To overcome a natural force, a feeling or an obstacle: vaincre sa peur, vaincre la maladie.^[6]
4. Se vaincre: to master oneself or one's passions.^[3][2]

Word family

• vaincu
• vainqueur
• invaincu

Related words

• convaincre
• évincer
• victorieux
• victoire
• invincible
• Latin vincō

References

1. ^ a b c d e Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l Rey, Alain, ed. (1992), Dictionnaire historique de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m 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. ^ Wartburg, Walther von, et al. (1922–2002), Französisches Etymologisches Wörterbuch, 25 vols., Bonn / Leipzig / Basel: Klopp / Teubner / Zbinden, p. 14, 463a
5. ^ Bloch, Oscar; Wartburg, Walther von (1989), Dictionnaire étymologique de la langue française, 8th ed., Paris: Presses universitaires de France
6. ^ a b c d e Rey-Debove, Josette; Rey, Alain, eds. (2007), Le Petit Robert de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
7. ^ Meyer-Lübke, Wilhelm (1935), Romanisches etymologisches Wörterbuch, 3rd ed., Heidelberg: Winter
8. ^ Dictionnaire de français Larousse, larousse.fr/dictionnaires/francais (accessed 2024)