allô French · revision 16652

18 Oct 2026, 10:26 by bogdan “French fr10k batch fr75l/b08: allonger, foi, considérer, allô, enfer” current version
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+ {{infobox|confidence=established|formation=borrowing|attested=1890 (hallo, 1881)|origins=en hallo}}
+ 
+ ==Pronunciation==
+ * IPA: /a.lo/^(Wiktionary)
+ 
+ ==Forms==
+ '''allô''' (interjection); also written ''allo''^(Wiktionary)
+ 
+ ==Etymology==
+ It is a frenchified form (1890) of hallo (1881), [[bor|en|hallo]], an interjection of the United States used to hail and greet someone and to call on the telephone; the operators were called “hello girls”.^(DHLF 1992)^(Grand Robert 2005)^(Wiktionary) The English word, also hello, is a variant of the older [[m|en|hollo]] (16th century), related to the cry [[m|en|holla]], which gave French [[holà]].^(DHLF 1992) The Grand Robert calls the English word an onomatopoeia and dates “allô” to 1880.^(Grand Robert 2005) A witness quoted in 1906 claims another origin: in 1880 people answered the telephone with “allons !”, later denasalized to allo.^(DHLF 1992)
+ 
+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==
+ ''Hallo'' is recorded in 1881 and ''allô'' in 1890, as the call that opens a telephone conversation.^(DHLF 1992)^(Grand Robert 2005)
+ 
+ ==Semantic evolution==
+ It has kept this use, often repeated (''allô, allô''), to check that the other person is listening.^(DHLF 1992)^(Wiktionary) In Canada ''hello'' is common, and in North American French ''allô'' is also a greeting face to face.^(DHLF 1992)^(Wiktionary) Familiar French also uses ''allô ?'' ironically to someone who has missed something obvious.^(Wiktionary) The English interjection ''hello'' itself came into French in 1895.^(DHLF 1992)
+ 
+ ==Timeline==
+ * 1880 – According to a witness, ''allons !'' on the telephone.^(DHLF 1992)
+ * 1881 – ''Hallo''.^(DHLF 1992)
+ * 1890 – ''Allô''.^(DHLF 1992)
+ * 1895 – ''Hello'' in French.^(DHLF 1992)
+ 
+ ==Meanings==
+ ===Interjection===
+ # [[m|en|hello]]: said when answering or making a telephone call: ''allô, qui est à l'appareil ?''.^(Wiktionary)^(DHLF 1992)
+ # Used to check that someone is still on the line or listening: ''allô ? tu m'entends ?''.^(Wiktionary)^(DHLF 1992)
+ # ''(Canada)'' Hello, hi, as a greeting.^(Wiktionary)
+ # ''(familiar)'' Hello? (to someone missing the obvious).^(Wiktionary)
+ 
+ ==Related words==
+ * [[holà]]
+ * [[en|hello]]
+ 
+ ==References==
+ {{reflist}}