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vorace

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Etymology and origin of the French word vorace

Confidence
Established
Formation
Borrowing
First attested
c. 1430 Jean Gallopes, Pèlerinage de la vie humaine More words from the 15th century
Borrowed from
Latin vorax
Ultimate origin
Latin vorō
Etymology tree
inherited borrowed derived
Latin vorō
Latin vorāx
French vorace
Spanish voraz
From the same root
Latin carnivorus ← vorō
Latin dēvorō ← vorō
Latin vorāgō ← vorō
English voracious ← vorāx

Pronunciation

Forms

vorace (plural voraces)[2]

Etymology

It is borrowed from Latin vorāx (“insatiable, greedy”), first found about 1430 in the altered form vorage, used until the 16th century, then as ⟨vorace⟩ from 1603.[3][4][1][5] The Latin adjective is formed from vorō (“to devour, swallow”), whose compound gave French dévorer.[3][4] Rey connects the verb with an Indo-European root Proto-Indo-European *gʷer- (“to swallow”), also behind gurges and gula, the sources of gorge and gueule.[4]

Earliest recorded meaning

The first record, about 1430, uses vorage figuratively for “that swallows up”.[3][4]

Semantic evolution

The form vorace appears in 1603 of wild animals that eat greedily (les bestes farouches et voraces).[3][4] It was applied to people in 1690 and to what shows gluttony in 1694 (appétit vorace), and has been used as a noun since 1845.[4][6] In agriculture, from 1767, it describes plants that exhaust the soil.[3][4] From the late 17th century it took figurative values: what destroys greedily (océan vorace, 1671 in the TLFi), an act or feeling showing great greed (1782, voraces usuriers), and a person who exploits those who depend on them (1834).[3][4] The adverb voracement dates from 1836.[3][4]

Timeline

  • c. 1430 – Vorage “that swallows up”.[3]
  • 1603 – Vorace of wild animals.[3][7]
  • 1671 – Océan vorace.[3]
  • 1690 – Of people, in Furetière.[6][4]
  • 1694 – Appétit vorace, in the Académie.[6][4]
  • 1767 – Of plants that exhaust the soil.[3][6]
  • 1834 – Of a person who exploits others, in Balzac.[6][4]
  • 1836 – Voracement appears.[3]
  • 1845 – Used as a noun.[4][6]

Meanings

Adjective

  1. Of an animal: that eats a great deal and greedily, voracious: Le brochet est un poisson vorace.[3][8][6]
  2. Of a person: gluttonous; also of an appetite: un appétit vorace.[8][6]
  3. (figurative) Avid, greedy for something.[8][6]
  4. That destroys or consumes greedily;[8][3] (agriculture) of a plant: exhausting the soil: plantes voraces.[8][3]

Noun

  1. A greedy eater: C'est un vorace.[8][4]

Word family

  • voracement

References

  1. ^ a b Rey, Alain, ed. (2005), Le Grand Robert de la langue française, electronic version, Paris: Le Robert
  2. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o 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 Rey, Alain, ed. (1992), Dictionnaire historique de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
  5. ^ Wartburg, Walther von, et al. (1922–2002), Französisches Etymologisches Wörterbuch, 25 vols., Bonn / Leipzig / Basel: Klopp / Teubner / Zbinden, p. 14, 632a
  6. ^ a b c d e f g h i Guilbert, Louis; Lagane, René; Niobey, Georges, eds. (1971–1978; 1989), Grand Larousse de la langue française, Paris: Larousse
  7. ^ Bloch, Oscar; Wartburg, Walther von (1989), Dictionnaire étymologique de la langue française, 8th ed., Paris: Presses universitaires de France
  8. ^ a b c d e f Rey-Debove, Josette; Rey, Alain, eds. (2007), Le Petit Robert de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert

Related etymologies

Cite this entry

“Vorace.” Etymologically, 15 Nov. 2026, etymologically.com/fr/vorace. Accessed 15 Nov. 2026.

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