belle English · revision 39629

+ {{infobox|confidence=established|formation=borrowing|attested=a1640, J. Fletcher et al., Beggars Bush|origins=la bellus}}

+

+ ==Pronunciation==

+ * /bɛl/^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Etymology==

+ It is [[bor|fr|belle|t=beautiful]], the feminine of [[m|fr|beau]] used as a noun,^(Barnhart 1988)^(Klein 1966)^(MWU 2024)^(Collins 2023) from [[fro|bele]], feminine of [[m|fro|bel|t=fine, handsome]],^(Etymonline)^(Barnhart 1988)^(Dictionary.com 2016) which continues [[la|bella]], the feminine of [[m|la|bellus|t=pretty, fair]].^(Etymonline)^(SOED 2002)^(ODE 2010) Etymonline, following de Vaan, traces the Latin adjective to a diminutive [[ine-pro|*dwenelo-]] of the root [[m|ine-pro|*deu-]], which also gave [[m|la|bonus|t=good]], and adds de Vaan's remark that the PIE etymology is disputed; the diminutive meaning explains why ''bellus'' was first used of women and children.^(Etymonline) The same French and Latin adjective is behind [[beau]] and [[embellish]].^(Klein 1966)^(Skeat 1911)

+

+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==

+ A beautiful woman, especially one who dresses to attract admiration, or the most admired woman of a place: a1640, in John Fletcher's ''Beggars Bush''.^(OED 2026)^(HTOED) Barnhart dates the play passage to 1622, Etymonline gives the 1620s and Merriam-Webster about 1640.^(Barnhart 1988)^(Etymonline)^(MWU 2024)

+

+ ==Semantic evolution==

+ Pepys used ''belle'' in 1668 as an adjective meaning pretty, a use that did not last.^(OED 2026)^(HTOED) Johnson (1755) defined the noun simply as a young lady, quoting Pope's ''Rape of the Lock'': "Could make a gentle belle reject a lord?"^(Johnson 1755) French phrases containing the word were also taken into English: for a brilliant gathering (1700), for love (1711), for a fair lady (1768) and for a woman who is attractive though plain (1908).^(OED 2026) The phrases ''belle of the ball'' and ''Southern belle'' are recorded in modern dictionaries,^(Collins 2023)^(MWU 2024)^(SOED 2002) and since 1932 American gay slang used ''belle'' for a good-looking young homosexual man.^(GDoS)

+

+ ==Timeline==

+ * 1622 – Barnhart's date for Fletcher's ''Beggars Bush''.^(Barnhart 1988)

+ * a1640 – a beautiful, admired woman.^(OED 2026)

+ * 1668 – (obsolete) as an adjective, pretty.^(OED 2026)

+ * 1700 – first of several French phrases with ''belle'' used in English.^(OED 2026)

+ * 1932 – (US, gay slang) a good-looking young homosexual man.^(GDoS)

+

+ ==Modern meaning==

+ ===Noun===

+ # A [[beautiful]] and [[popular]] girl or woman.^(Collins 2023)^(MWU 2024)

+ # The most admired woman or girl at a place or gathering, especially in ''the belle of the ball''.^(Collins 2023)^(SOED 2002)

+

+ ==Related words==

+ * [[beau]]

+ * [[beauty]]

+ * [[embellish]]

+ * [[belladonna]]

+ * [[bonus]]

+

+ ==References==

+ {{reflist}}