régir French · revision 15981
17 Oct 2026, 21:34 by bogdan “New French entry (TLFi, FEW, DHLF, Bloch–Wartburg…)” current version
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+ {{infobox|confidence=established|formation=borrowing|attested=1234|origins=la regō}}
+
+ ==Pronunciation==
+ * IPA: /ʁe.ʒiʁ/^(Wiktionary)
+
+ ==Forms==
+ '''régir'''^(Wiktionary)
+
+ ==Etymology==
+ It is an adaptation of [[la|regō|t=to direct, guide, rule]],^(TLFi)^(DHLF 1992)^(Grand Robert 2005)^(FEW|10, 205b) with a change of conjugation that drove out the Middle French form “reger”;^(TLFi)^(DHLF 1992) Wiktionary calls it semi-learned.^(Wiktionary) The Latin verb is related to [[la|rēx|t=king]] (see [[roi]]).^(DHLF 1992)^(Littré 1873)
+
+ Compare [[es|regir]].^(Wiktionary) The same Latin verb lies behind [[régime]], [[régent]] and [[région]].^(Grand Robert 2005)
+
+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==
+ A charter of 1234 has it in the sense “to lead, govern, administer”.^(TLFi)^(Grand Robert 2005)
+
+ ==Semantic evolution==
+ The senses “to govern” (Corneille's ''Montrez-lui comme il faut régir une province'') and “to manage (property)” (1466) are now dated or obsolete.^(DHLF 1992)^(Grand Robert 2005)^(GLLF 1989) The modern use goes back to the 16th century: “to subject (conduct) to rules” (Ronsard, about 1550), then with a law or principle as subject, “to determine” (Montaigne, 1580: the stars ''régissent'' our inclinations).^(DHLF 1992)^(TLFi)^(Littré 1873) In grammar a word ''régit'' another from Marot (about 1530–1538: ''le terme qui va devant volontiers regist le suivant''), whence ''régissant'' (Condillac); in the sciences it is said of laws governing a natural phenomenon (Taine, 1870).^(TLFi)^(DHLF 1992)^(Littré 1873) The derivatives ''régie'' (16th century; in its modern administrative sense from 1670) and ''régisseur'' (1740) belong to the old sense “to manage”.^(DHLF 1992)^(Bloch & Wartburg 1989)
+
+ ==Timeline==
+ * 1234 – “To govern”, in a charter.^(TLFi)
+ * 1466 – “To manage (property)”.^(DHLF 1992)
+ * c. 1530 – A grammatical term, in Marot.^(DHLF 1992)
+ * 1580 – “To determine”, in Montaigne.^(TLFi)
+ * 1670 – ''Régie'' “management”.^(DHLF 1992)
+ * 1740 – ''Régisseur''.^(Bloch & Wartburg 1989)
+ * 1870 – Of natural laws, in Taine.^(DHLF 1992)
+
+ ==Meanings==
+ ===Verb===
+ # To [[m|en|govern]], determine (of laws, rules): ''les lois qui régissent la société''.^(Petit Robert 2007)^(Larousse)
+ # ''(grammar)'' To govern: ''cette conjonction régit le subjonctif''.^(Petit Robert 2007)^(Littré 1873)
+ # ''(dated)'' To govern, rule (a state); to manage (property).^(Petit Robert 2007)^(GLLF 1989)
+
+ ==Word family==
+ * [[régie]]
+ * [[régisseur]]
+ * [[régie]]
+ * [[régisseur]]
+
+ ==Related words==
+ * [[régime]]
+ * [[régent]]
+ * [[roi]]
+ * [[la|regō]]
+
+ ==References==
+ {{reflist}}