craindre French · revision 17214

+ {{infobox|confidence=established|formation=inherited|attested=late 10th century, Passion de Clermont (crement)|origins=la tremō}}

+

+ ==Pronunciation==

+ * IPA: /kʁɛ̃dʁ/^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Forms==

+ '''craindre'''^(Wiktionary)

+ Old French ''criembre'' (about 1050), ''crendre'' (''Chanson de Roland''), ''criendre'', ''creindre'', ''craindre'' from the 13th century.^(GLLF 1989)^(Petit Robert 2007)^(DHLF 1992)

+

+ ==Etymology==

+ It is [[inh|fro|criembre]], [[inh|la-vul|*cremō]], a Gallo-Roman alteration of [[la|tremō|t=to tremble; to tremble at, fear]].^(TLFi)^(DHLF 1992)^(Bloch & Wartburg 1989)^(Grand Robert 2005)^(FEW|13/2, 238b) The initial /k/ is explained by crossing with a Gaulish word containing a Celtic root “*crit-” “trembling”, reconstructed from [[ga|crith|t=trembling]] and [[br|kridien]].^(TLFi)^(Bloch & Wartburg 1989)^(Grand Robert 2005)^(Wiktionary) Very early “criembre” was remade as “crendre”, then “craindre”, on the pattern of the verbs in “-aindre”, and its whole conjugation was refashioned during the Middle Ages.^(Bloch & Wartburg 1989)^(DHLF 1992) Littré compared [[geindre]], from [[la|gemō]], which shows the same ending.^(Littré 1873)

+

+ Compare [[pro|cremer]].^(Bloch & Wartburg 1989) In the other Romance languages the Latin verb kept the sense “tremble”, as [[it|tremare]], and fear was expressed by descendants of [[la|timeō]]: [[it|temere]], [[es|temer]].^(Bloch & Wartburg 1989)^(DHLF 1992)

+

+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==

+ The verb first appears at the end of the 10th century in the ''Passion'' of Clermont, used absolutely in the sense “to be afraid”; the ''Vie de saint Alexis'' (about 1050) has ''mult criem que ne t'em perde'' “I greatly fear that I shall lose you”.^(TLFi)^(DHLF 1992)

+

+ ==Semantic evolution==

+ It was soon constructed with a noun object (''Chanson de Roland''), with ''que'' and the subjunctive, and with ''de'' and the infinitive (Chrétien de Troyes, about 1175).^(TLFi)^(DHLF 1992) In a religious context it meant to revere God (about 1120), whence ''ne craindre ni Dieu ni diable''.^(TLFi)^(DHLF 1992)^(Littré 1873) Weaker uses followed: “to be sensitive to, not to tolerate” (1580), as of a plant that cannot stand frost, and the litotes ''ne pas craindre sa peine'' (about 1530).^(TLFi)^(DHLF 1992)

+

+ Modern spoken French has ''ça craint'' “that's bad, dodgy, lame”, with the adjective ''craignos'' (1967); in the 1980s and 1990s young speakers also used ''c'est la crainte''.^(DHLF 1992) In the dialects of France ''craindre'' is little used, people rather say ''avoir peur''.^(Bloch & Wartburg 1989)

+

+ ==Timeline==

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

+ * c. 1050 – ''Criem que'', in the ''Vie de saint Alexis''.^(TLFi)

+ * c. 1100 – The remade future ''crendrez'' in the ''Chanson de Roland''.^(TLFi)^(Bloch & Wartburg 1989)

+ * c. 1120 – “To revere (God)”, in the ''Voyage de saint Brendan''.^(TLFi)

+ * c. 1175 – ''Craindre de'' with the infinitive, Chrétien de Troyes.^(TLFi)

+ * c. 1275 – ''Creindre'' in Jean de Meun's ''Roman de la Rose''.^(TLFi)

+ * 1580 – “Not to tolerate”, Bernard Palissy.^(TLFi)

+ * 1967 – ''Craignos''.^(DHLF 1992)

+

+ ==Meanings==

+ ===Verb===

+ # To [[m|en|fear]], be afraid of: ''craindre la mort'', ''craindre que'' with the subjunctive, ''je crains de le déranger''.^(Petit Robert 2007)^(Le Robert)^(Wiktionary)

+ # ''Craindre pour'': to fear for, be anxious about: ''craindre pour sa vie''.^(Le Robert)^(Petit Robert 2007)

+ # To [[m|en|revere]], hold in awe: ''craindre Dieu''.^(Petit Robert 2007)^(Littré 1873)

+ # Of things: to be easily damaged by, not to stand: ''cette plante craint le gel''.^(TLFi)^(DHLF 1992)

+ # ''(slang, intransitive)'' To be bad, lousy, unpleasant: ''ça craint''.^(Larousse)^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Word family==

+ * [[crainte]]

+ * [[craintif]]

+ * [[craintivement]]

+ * [[craignos]]

+

+ ==Related words==

+ * [[trembler]]

+ * [[terreur]]

+ * [[trépidation]]

+

+ ==References==

+ {{reflist}}