formulă

Forms

formulă f (plural formule)^[1]

Etymology

It is borrowed from French formule, with borrowed from Latin fōrmula beside it, as DEX, MDA2, Tiktin, Wiktionary and the neologism dictionaries give it.^{[2][3][4][1][5]} Scriban names only the Latin word, a diminutive like virgulă.^[6]

The Latin word is formed from fōrma (“form, shape”) with the diminutive suffix -ula; it meant “prettiness” and “outline”, then a list, a rule, and the set wording of a legal action.^[7][1] The French word was borrowed from it in 1372, in the spelling ⟨fourmulle⟩.^[8] Romanian formă is a neologism from the same Latin family.^[1]

Earliest recorded meaning

Tiktin dates the first record to 1800.^[4] Negulici's dictionary of neologisms (1848) defines it as a neat, concise expression, a fixed form, a model for documents.^[9]

Semantic evolution

The first senses were the set wording of documents and of polite phrases: the DA quotes Costache Negruzzi on a document that closed with the usual formulă leaving the final decision to the prince's wisdom.^[10][9] Mathematics and chemistry then gave it the senses “relation written in symbols” and “chemical formula”.^[11][2] Later meanings are “password” and “way, solution”, and in the press of the 2000s the format of a programme.^[2][12] In motor sport it names the racing categories, Formula 1.^[3]

Timeline

• 1800 – first record.^[4]
• 1848 – in Negulici's dictionary of neologisms.^[9]
• 1872 – Negruzzi's formulă “the set closing words of a document”, in his collected writings.^[3][10]
• 1929 – Șăineanu gives the algebraic and chemical senses.^[11]

Meanings

Noun

1. A precise statement of a rule; a general, fixed expression of an idea or law that applies to many cases.^[2][3]
2. A set phrase said on certain occasions, or the set wording of a document or sentence;^[2][3] formulă de politețe, a conventional polite phrase.^[2][3]
3. (mathematics) A relation written in letters, figures and signs that states a general property and serves to solve problems of one kind.^[2]
4. (chemistry) A formula in chemical symbols that shows the make-up of a molecule.^[2][3]
5. A password.^[2][3]
6. A way of doing something; a solution; the format of a programme or service.^[2][12]

Related words

• formă
• formula
• Latin fōrmula

References

1. ^ a b c d e Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j DEX (2009), Dicționarul explicativ al limbii române [Explanatory dictionary of the Romanian language], Bucharest: Editura Univers Enciclopedic, p. 407
3. ^ a b c d e f g h Academia Română, Institutul de Lingvistică „Iorgu Iordan – Al. Rosetti” (2010), Micul dicționar academic, 2nd ed., 4 vols., București: Univers Enciclopedic Gold, p. 1, 931
4. ^ a b c Tiktin, Hariton (2000–2005), Rumänisch-deutsches Wörterbuch, 3rd ed., revised by Paul Miron and Elsa Lüder, 3 vols., Cluj-Napoca: Clusium, p. s.v. formulă
5. ^ Marcu, Florin (2000), Marele dicționar de neologisme, București: Saeculum Vizual, p. s.v. formulă
6. ^ Scriban, August (1939), Dicționaru limbii românești (etimologii, înțelesuri, exemple, citațiuni, arhaizme, neologizme, provincializme), Iași: Presa Bună, p. 521
7. ^ Glare, P. G. W., ed. (2012), Oxford Latin Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press, p. formula
8. ^ Rey, Alain, ed. (1992), Dictionnaire historique de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert, p. formule
9. ^ a b c Negulici, I. D. (1848), Vocabular romînesc de toate vorbele streine întroduse pînă acum în limba romînească și de toate cuvintele ce s-ar mai putea introduce încă, București, p. s.v. formulă
10. ^ a b Academia Română (1913–1949), Dicționarul limbii române (DA), ed. Sextil Pușcariu, tom I (A–B, C, D–De) and tom II (F–I, J–Lojniță), București: Socec / Universul / Monitorul Oficial și Imprimeriile Statului; page scans at cflr-scans.solirom.ro, p. s.v. formulă
11. ^ a b Șăineanu, Lazăr (1929), Dicționar universal al limbei române, 6th ed., Craiova: Scrisul Românesc, p. 1, 257
12. ^ a b Dimitrescu, Florica (1997), Dicționar de cuvinte recente, 2nd ed., București: Logos (with the 3rd ed., 2013, in CLRE), p. s.v. formulă