vouloir French · revision 16212

+ {{infobox|confidence=established|formation=inherited|attested=881, Sequence of Saint Eulalia|origins=ine-pro *wel-}}

+

+ ==Pronunciation==

+ * IPA: /vu.lwaʁ/^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Forms==

+ '''vouloir'''^(Wiktionary)

+ Old French [[m|fro|voleir]] (881), ''voloir'' (12th century); ''vouloir'' is found before 1220.^(DHLF 1992)^(GLLF 1989)

+

+ ==Etymology==

+ It is [[inh|fro|voleir]], [[inh|la-vul|*voleō|alt=*volēre]], formed on the stem of Classical Latin forms of [[m|la|volō|alt=velle|t=to want]] such as [[m|la|volō|t=I want]], “volēbam” and “voluī”, and under the influence of [[m|la-vul|*poteō|alt=*potēre]] (whence [[pouvoir]]).^(DHLF 1992)^(FEW|14, 216b)^(Bloch & Wartburg 1989)^(GLLF 1989) “Velle” meant “to desire, wish”, hence “to consent to”, “to decide, order” and “to claim, maintain”, and served as an auxiliary in verbal periphrases.^(DHLF 1992) It goes back to an Indo-European root [[ine-pro|*wel-|t=to want, choose]], found in Slavic and Italic, and in [[de|wollen]] and [[en|will]].^(DHLF 1992)^(Petit Robert 2007)

+

+ Cognate with [[ro|vrea]], [[it|volere]], [[oc|voler]] and [[ca|voler]].^(Petit Robert 2007) Spanish and Portuguese use [[m|es|querer]], from [[m|la|quaerō]], instead.^(Petit Robert 2007)^(Bloch & Wartburg 1989)

+

+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==

+ The ''Sequence of Saint Eulalia'' (881) has the perfect with an infinitive, “to intend to”: ''Voldrent la veintre li Deo inimi'' “the enemies of God wanted to overcome her”.^(TLFi)^(GLLF 1989)

+

+ ==Semantic evolution==

+ ''Vouloir'' first had the general sense “to intend to”, with an infinitive, a clause or a neuter pronoun (''je le veux'').^(DHLF 1992) It then meant “to wish strongly”, first in ''voleir mal a qqn'' “to hate someone” (late 10th century), still used in the 18th century, and ''vouloir qqch.'' is found from 1080.^(DHLF 1992)^(GLLF 1989) ''Vuleir meilz'' “to prefer” occurs about 1100.^(TLFi) ''Vouloir du bien, du mal à qqn'' is recorded in 1538.^(GLLF 1989)

+

+ The infinitive became a noun, ''le vouloir'' “will”, in the 12th century, and ''bon'', ''mauvais vouloir'' “good, ill will” is found in 1432.^(Grand Robert 2005)^(Petit Robert 2007) The old present participle ''veuillant'' survives in [[bienveillant]] and ''malveillant'' (12th century).^(Bloch & Wartburg 1989)

+

+ ==Timeline==

+ * 881 – ''Voldrent'' in the ''Sequence of Saint Eulalia''.^(TLFi)

+ * late 10th century – ''Voleir mal a'' “to hate”.^(DHLF 1992)

+ * 1080 – ''Vouloir qqch.'' in the ''Chanson de Roland''.^(GLLF 1989)

+ * 12th century – The noun ''vouloir'', ''bienveillant''.^(Grand Robert 2005)^(Bloch & Wartburg 1989)

+ * 1432 – ''Bon vouloir''.^(Petit Robert 2007)

+ * 1538 – ''Vouloir du bien à qqn''.^(GLLF 1989)

+

+ ==Meanings==

+ ===Verb===

+ # To [[m|en|want]], to [[m|en|wish]], to desire: ''je veux partir'', ''il veut que tu viennes''.^(Wiktionary)^(GLLF 1989)

+ # To consent, to agree: ''je veux bien''.^(GLLF 1989)^(DHLF 1992)

+ # ''(imperative, formal)'' Please: ''veuillez vous asseoir''.^(Wiktionary)

+ # To expect, to require: ''la loi veut que…''.^(Wiktionary)^(DHLF 1992)

+ # ''Vouloir dire'': to mean.^(Wiktionary)

+ # ''En vouloir à qqn'': to bear a grudge against someone.^(Wiktionary)

+ # ''Se vouloir'': to claim to be, to see oneself as.^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ===Noun===

+ # ''(literary)'' Will: ''selon son bon vouloir''.^(Petit Robert 2007)^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Word family==

+ * [[bienveillant]]

+ * [[malveillant]]

+

+ ==Related words==

+ * [[volonté]]

+ * [[volontiers]]

+ * [[la|volō]]

+

+ ==References==

+ {{reflist}}