premier French · revision 16056

+ {{infobox|confidence=established|formation=inherited|attested=late 10th century, Passion of Clermont|origins=la prīmārius}}

+

+ ==Pronunciation==

+ * IPA: /pʁə.mje/^(Wiktionary)

+ * IPA: /pʁə.mje.ʁ‿/^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Forms==

+ '''premier''' (feminine première, masculine plural premiers, feminine plural premières)^(Wiktionary)

+ [[fro|primers]] (about 980), ''premer'', ''premier'' (''Chanson de Roland''); feminine ''premiere'', ''première'' (Académie from 1740).^(DHLF 1992)^(GLLF 1989)^(TLFi)

+

+ ==Etymology==

+ It is [[inh|la|prīmārius|t=of the first rank]],^(TLFi)^(DHLF 1992)^(Bloch & Wartburg 1989)^(FEW|9, 376b) a derivative of [[la|prīmus|t=first]], which survived in Old French as “prin”, still used around Lyon for “fine, thin” (see [[prime]], [[printemps]]).^(Bloch & Wartburg 1989)^(Grand Robert 2005) The learned doublet is [[primaire]].^(DHLF 1992)^(Wiktionary)

+

+ Compare [[pro|primier]], [[ca|primer]], [[es|primero]] and [[pt|primeiro]], Italian “primiero” was taken from French.^(REW 1935)^(Littré 1873)

+

+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==

+ The ''Passion'' of Clermont (late 10th century) has ''primers'' for “the earliest”;^(TLFi)^(DHLF 1992) the ''Chanson de Roland'' has ''cest premier meis'' and ''nostre est li premers colps'', ours is the first blow.^(Littré 1873)

+

+ ==Semantic evolution==

+ Its first sense is temporal: ''primers anz'' “the first ages” (early 12th century, later ''premiers temps''), ''premier âge'', ''premières amours'' and ''le premier venu'' (Grévin, 1561), and after a king's name (''François premier'', 1575–1585).^(TLFi)^(DHLF 1992) About 1100 it also meant what comes first in space, whence ''premier étage'' and the noun ''le premier'' (1726–1762), and ''la tête la première'' (1564; 1508 ''la teste première'').^(TLFi)^(DHLF 1992) From 1119 it was the first in a series (''primier chapitle'').^(TLFi)

+

+ From about 1170 (Chrétien de Troyes) it meant first in importance or quality, whence ''premier président'' (1606), ''premier ministre'' (Académie, 1694), ''de première qualité'' and slang ''de première'' (1893).^(TLFi)^(GLLF 1989) In 1567 Amyot used it for what was so at the start, whence ''matière première'' (1690) and ''nombre premier'' (late 14th century).^(TLFi)^(GLLF 1989) As a feminine noun ''la première'' was the class of rhetoric in school (1704), the first class in transport (1838) and the first performance of a play.^(TLFi)^(Littré 1873) Recent usage has ''arts premiers'' for the arts of non-industrial peoples.^(DHLF 1992)

+

+ ==Timeline==

+ * Late 10th century – ''Primers'' in the ''Passion'' of Clermont.^(TLFi)

+ * c. 1100 – Of place, in the ''Chanson de Roland''.^(TLFi)

+ * 1119 – ''Primier chapitle''.^(TLFi)

+ * c. 1170 – First in rank, in Chrétien de Troyes.^(TLFi)

+ * 1561 – ''Le premier venu''.^(TLFi)

+ * 1564 – ''La tête la première''.^(TLFi)

+ * 1606 – ''Premier président''.^(TLFi)

+ * 1690 – ''Matière première''.^(TLFi)

+ * 1694 – ''Premier ministre''.^(TLFi)

+ * 1704 – ''La première'' (school class).^(TLFi)

+ * 1726 – ''Le premier'' “first floor”.^(TLFi)

+

+ ==Meanings==

+ ===Adjective===

+ # [[m|en|first|alt=First]]: ''le premier jour du mois'', ''la première fois'', ''François Ier''.^(Petit Robert 2007)^(Wiktionary)

+ # Foremost, leading: ''premier ministre'', ''de premier ordre'', ''au premier plan''.^(Petit Robert 2007)^(GLLF 1989)

+ # Original, basic: ''matière première'', ''le sens premier''.^(TLFi)^(Petit Robert 2007)

+ # ''(mathematics)'' [[m|en|prime|alt=Prime]]: ''nombre premier''.^(Wiktionary)^(GLLF 1989)

+

+ ===Noun===

+ # The first (one): ''le premier venu'', ''jeune premier'': the male lead.^(Petit Robert 2007)^(Wiktionary)

+ # ''Le premier'': the first floor; the first of the month.^(Petit Robert 2007)^(DHLF 1992)

+ # ''La première'': the first night (of a play); first class; first gear; the penultimate year of a lycée.^(Littré 1873)^(TLFi)^(Larousse)

+ # A prime minister, premier.^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Word family==

+ * [[premièrement]]

+ * [[premier-né]]

+ * [[avant-première]]

+

+ ==Related words==

+ * [[primaire]]

+ * [[prime]]

+ * [[printemps]]

+ * [[la|prīmārius]]

+

+ ==Usage notes==

+ ''Premier'' also forms ''premier-né'', ''avant-première'' and the adverb ''premièrement''.^(Petit Robert 2007)^(DHLF 1992)

+

+ ==References==

+ {{reflist}}