théâtre French · revision 16974

+ {{infobox|confidence=established|formation=borrowing|attested=mid-12th century, Roman de Thèbes|origins=grc θέα}}

+

+ ==Pronunciation==

+ * IPA (Paris): /te.ɑtʁ/^(Wiktionary)

+ * IPA (Belgium, Switzerland): [teˈaːtʁ̥]^(Wiktionary)

+ * IPA: [te.ˈɑːtʁ̥]^(Wiktionary)

+ * IPA (Quebec, nonstandard): [teˈɑu̯tʁ̥]^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Forms==

+ '''théâtre''' ''m'' (plural théâtres)^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Etymology==

+ It is [[bor|la|theātrum|t=theatre; audience; stage]],^(TLFi)^(DHLF 1992)^(Grand Robert 2005)^(FEW|13/1, 299b) from [[grc|θέατρον|tr=théatron|t=place for viewing]], from [[m|grc|θεάομαι|tr=theáomai|t=to watch, contemplate]], from [[m|grc|θέα|tr=théa|t=a looking at; sight, spectacle]].^(Wiktionary)^(GLLF 1989)^(DHLF 1992) Rey relates the Greek noun to [[m|grc|θαῦμα|tr=thaûma|t=wonder]], as in [[thaumaturge]].^(DHLF 1992)

+

+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==

+ It is first found in the ''Roman de Thèbes'' (mid-12th century) for a place where a single combat is fought before spectators.^(GLLF 1989)^(DHLF 1992)

+

+ ==Semantic evolution==

+ In the ''Faits des Romains'' (1213) it is the Roman amphitheatre where public shows were held.^(TLFi)^(DHLF 1992) With the spread of secular plays beside the Christian mysteries it was applied to the hall where they were given (about 1370, Oresme) and to the building (end of the 14th century, Eustache Deschamps).^(DHLF 1992)^(GLLF 1989) From 1549 it was also a raised platform for a public ceremony, a sense tied to open-air performances on trestles.^(DHLF 1992)

+

+ The birth of modern tragedy in 16th-century France multiplied its uses: the dramatic works of an author or a nation (1561, Jacques Grévin), dramatic poetry (1573), the performance (1636), and, from 1693 the company that puts on plays.^(DHLF 1992)^(TLFi) D'Aubignac (1657) uses it for the art of writing and acting plays.^(DHLF 1992) ''Pièce de théâtre'' dates from before 1650 and ''coup de théâtre'' from 1743, first on the stage and soon in life.^(DHLF 1992)^(TLFi) Figuratively it has meant “artificial attitude” since 1660, a sense kept in ''de théâtre''.^(DHLF 1992) By analogy it named garden terraces such as the ''théâtre d'eau'' (1671), an anatomy theatre (1691) and, in the navy, the forecastle (1690).^(DHLF 1992)

+

+ ==Timeline==

+ * Mid-12th century – In the ''Roman de Thèbes''.^(GLLF 1989)

+ * 1213 – The Roman amphitheatre.^(TLFi)

+ * c. 1370 – A hall for plays, in Oresme.^(GLLF 1989)

+ * 1381–1389 – A building for shows, in Eustache Deschamps.^(TLFi)

+ * 1561 – The dramatic works of an author.^(TLFi)

+ * 1657 – The art of drama, in d'Aubignac.^(DHLF 1992)

+ * 1660 – “Artificial attitude”.^(DHLF 1992)

+ * 1671 – ''Théâtre d'eau''.^(TLFi)

+ * 1743 – ''Coup de théâtre''.^(TLFi)

+ * 1949 – Cocteau's ''Théâtre de poche''.^(TLFi)

+

+ ==Meanings==

+ ===Noun===

+ # A [[m|en|theatre]], a building or hall where plays and shows are performed: ''aller au théâtre''.^(Petit Robert 2007)^(Wiktionary)

+ # The dramatic art, drama as a genre: ''faire du théâtre'', ''pièce de théâtre'', a play.^(DHLF 1992)^(Wiktionary)

+ # The dramatic works of an author, a period or a nation: ''le théâtre de Racine''.^(DHLF 1992)^(TLFi)

+ # ''Coup de théâtre'': a dramatic turn of events.^(TLFi)^(Wiktionary)

+ # ''(figurative)'' The place where an important event happens, the scene.^(TLFi)^(Littré 1873)

+ # ''(figurative)'' Affectation, playacting: ''de théâtre''.^(DHLF 1992)

+ # ''(Missouri, Louisiana)'' A [[m|en|cinema]].^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Word family==

+ * [[théâtreux]]

+ * [[théâtrophone]]

+

+ ==Related words==

+ * [[théâtral]]

+ * [[amphithéâtre]]

+

+ ==References==

+ {{reflist}}