voici French · revision 17350

+ {{infobox|confidence=established|formation=compound|attested=1360–1370, Baudouin de Sebourc (vechi)|origins=la videō}}

+

+ ==Pronunciation==

+ * IPA: /vwa.si/^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Forms==

+ '''voici''' (defective)^(Wiktionary)

+ Old French ''veiz ci'' and ''vois ci''; joined forms ''veeschi'' (late 13th century), ''vecy'' and ''vezci'' (14th century); ''voici'' from 1485.^(DHLF 1992)

+ The Académie wrote ''voicy'' in 1694 and 1718 and has written ''voici'' since 1740.^(TLFi)

+

+ ==Etymology==

+ It is [[af|fr|vois|ci|t2=here]], “vois” being the second person singular imperative of [[voir|t=to see]]: literally “see here”.^(TLFi)^(DHLF 1992)^(Wiktionary) The Grand Robert allows that “vois” may be a bare verb stem taken from the indicative.^(Grand Robert 2005) “Voir” continues [[la|videō|t=to see]].^(Bloch & Wartburg 1989)^(FEW|14, 426b)

+

+ Old French kept the parts separate: the TLFi reads “veiz me ci” in the “Chanson de Roland” as “you see me here” and suggests that the frequent question form led to the joining, Rey and the GLLF take it as a plural imperative, “see me here”, set against singular “vei mi ci” (about 1170).^(TLFi)^(DHLF 1992)^(GLLF 1989) “Vois ci” then replaced the older “veiz ci”.^(DHLF 1992)^(Grand Robert 2005) [[voilà]] was formed in the same way, a little later.^(DHLF 1992)

+

+ Littré gives the dialect forms [[wa|voci]] and Burgundian “veci”.^(Littré 1873)

+

+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==

+ The ''Chanson de Roland'' has the parts still apart: ''Dreiz emperere, veiz me ci en present'' (“rightful emperor, see me here before you”).^(Littré 1873)^(TLFi) The joined ''vechi'' is first found in ''Baudouin de Sebourc'' (1360–1370), pointing to a person or thing close by.^(TLFi)

+

+ ==Semantic evolution==

+ Machaut uses ''vezci'' in 1361 to introduce what is about to be said, and ''vezcy que'' (1369) presents an action happening at that moment.^(TLFi) With an infinitive it draws attention to an action under way (1485), surviving mainly as literary ''voici venir''.^(TLFi)^(DHLF 1992) Ronsard (1564) gives it a time sense, “here is the month and the day”, and Diderot (1771) uses it for “it is now (so long) since”.^(TLFi) Set phrases followed: ironic ''nous voici bien'' (1671), ''nous y voici'' (1725) and ''en voici bien d'une autre'' “here's another surprise” (1728).^(TLFi)

+

+ Rey notes that the contrast of ''voici'' (near) with ''voilà'' (farther), recorded from 1458, survives only in formal language or when both words appear together; everyday French mostly uses ''voilà''.^(DHLF 1992)^(Petit Robert 2007)

+

+ ==Timeline==

+ * c. 1100 – ''Veiz me ci'' in the ''Chanson de Roland''.^(TLFi)

+ * 1360–1370 – ''Vechi'', joined, in ''Baudouin de Sebourc''.^(TLFi)

+ * 1361 – Machaut's ''vezci'' introduces what follows.^(TLFi)

+ * 1458 – ''Voicy'' contrasted with ''voilà''.^(DHLF 1992)^(GLLF 1989)

+ * 1485 – The form ''voici''; use with an infinitive.^(DHLF 1992)^(TLFi)

+ * 1564 – A time sense in Ronsard.^(TLFi)

+ * 1728 – ''En voici bien d'une autre'' in Lesage.^(TLFi)

+ * 1771 – “It is now (so long) since”, in Diderot.^(TLFi)

+

+ ==Meanings==

+ ===Preposition===

+ # Here is, here are: presents a person or thing close by: ''voici mon fils'', ''me voici'', ''les voici qui arrivent''.^(Petit Robert 2007)^(Larousse)

+ # Opposed to [[voilà]], points to what is nearer: ''voici Pierre et là-bas voilà Paul''.^(Larousse)

+ # Announces what is about to be said or done: ''voici mes intentions''.^(Larousse)^(DHLF 1992)

+ # Points to what is arriving or beginning: ''voici la pluie'', ''(literary)'' ''voici venir…''.^(Le Robert)^(Petit Robert 2007)

+ # ''(literary)'' [[m|en|ago]], for: ''voici deux ans''.^(Wiktionary)^(DHLF 1992)

+ # ''Nous y voici'': here we are, we have come to the point.^(TLFi)

+

+ ==Word family==

+ * [[revoici]]

+

+ ==Related words==

+ * [[voilà]]

+ * [[voir]]

+ * [[ci]]

+

+ ==References==

+ {{reflist}}