frământa

Forms

frământa (third-person singular present frământă, past participle frământat, third-person subjunctive frământe) 1st conjugation^[1][2]

Etymology

Its Latin source is disputed.^[3][1] In the Academy dictionaries it is inherited from Vulgar Latin *fragmentō (“to break into pieces”), formed on fragmentum (“fragment”).^[4][2][5][6] The DA explains that the original sense, “to crumble, crush into small pieces”, was lost except in kneading, where lumps of flour and water are broken up and worked into dough.^[5] Pușcariu, Candrea and Densusianu, the REW and Capidan held the same view.^[3][7]

For Ciorănescu, Tiktin and Wiktionary it is inherited from Latin fermentō (“to leaven”).^[3][8][1] Ciorănescu argues that kneading does not break the dough into particles but binds them into one mass, and that the two stages of bread-making were confused because the leaven is added during kneading.^[3] Pascu also starts from the verb meaning “to leaven”.^[9]

It survives in Aromanian frimintu and Megleno-Romanian frimint.^[3][10][11] The learned loan fermenta is a doublet if the second etymology is right.^[1]

Earliest recorded meaning

Tiktin's first record is from a law book of 1642.^[8] The verbal noun frământare “kneading” appears earlier, about 1560.^[12] The Bucharest Bible of 1688 has the kneading sense, in the command to knead three measures of fine flour and bake cakes (Genesis 18:6); this is MDA2's first record.^[8][4][5]

Semantic evolution

The DA notes that the verb replaced the older soage for kneading dough.^[5] From kneading it was extended to working any soft mass, such as clay trodden with the feet, and to stamping the ground or beating a person.^[4][13] Figurative senses appear by the 17th and 18th centuries: Miron Costin writes that a matter was long turned over in council, and a 1794 text that the country was shaken by changes of foreign rule.^[8] Of thoughts and worries it means to torment, and reflexively to fret or rack one's brains.^[8][2] Folk usage also had a frământa la inimă “to have colic”.^[4]

Timeline

• c. 1560 – the verbal noun frământare “kneading”.^[12]
• 1642 – Tiktin's first record of the verb.^[8]
• 1673 – frămînt glosses a Slavonic verb “to press” in a Slavonic–Romanian lexicon.^[14]
• c. 1675 – the figurative sense “to debate at length” in Miron Costin.^[8]
• 1688 – “to knead” in the Bucharest Bible, and frământător “baker”.^[8][15][16]
• 1794 – “to shake, unsettle” of a country.^[8]

Meanings

Verb

1. To knead: to press and mix dough into an even mass.^[2][4][1]
2. To stamp: a frământa pământul “to beat the ground with the feet”; to beat or trample a person lying on the ground.^[2][4]
3. (figurative) To turn over an idea or plan at length.^[2]
4. Of feelings, thoughts and the like: to trouble or torment someone; reflexively, to fret or rack one's brains.^[2][8]
5. To stir or shake violently; reflexively, to be restless, to move to and fro.^[2][8]
6. To twist something in the hands: a-și frământa mâinile “to wring one's hands”.^[2][4]

Word family

• frământare
• frământător
• frământătură

Related words

• fermenta
• Aromanian frimintu

Usage notes

A proverb says that a woman who does not want to knead sifts flour all day, of those who put off a task with endless preparations.^[4][17] A-și frământa mâinile “to wring one's hands” shows great anxiety.^[2]

References

1. ^ a b c d e f 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. 413
3. ^ a b c d e Ciorănescu, Alexandru (1958–1966), Diccionario etimológico rumano, La Laguna: Universidad de La Laguna (Romanian ed.: Dicționarul etimologic al limbii române, București: Saeculum, 2001), p. s.v. frămînta
4. ^ 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, 939
5. ^ a b c d 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. frământa
6. ^ Meyer-Lübke, Wilhelm (1935), Romanisches etymologisches Wörterbuch, 3rd ed., Heidelberg: Winter, p. 3473
7. ^ Capidan, Theodor (1935), Meglenoromânii III: Dicționar meglenoromân, București: Academia Română
8. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Tiktin, Hariton (2000–2005), Rumänisch-deutsches Wörterbuch, 3rd ed., revised by Paul Miron and Elsa Lüder, 3 vols., Cluj-Napoca: Clusium, p. s.v. frământá
9. ^ Pascu, Giorge (1925), Dictionnaire étymologique macédoroumain, 2 vols. (I: Les éléments latins et romans; II: Les éléments grecs, turcs, slaves, albanais, germaniques, magyars, néologismes, créations immédiates, obscurs), Iași: Cultura Națională
10. ^ Papahagi, Tache (1963), Dicționarul dialectului aromân, general și etimologic, București: Editura Academiei Republicii Populare Romîne
11. ^ Saramandu, Nicolae (coord.) et al. (2010–), Dicționarul dialectului meglenoromân, general și etimologic, fascicles in Fonetică și dialectologie XXIX–
12. ^ a b Tiktin, Hariton (2000–2005), Rumänisch-deutsches Wörterbuch, 3rd ed., revised by Paul Miron and Elsa Lüder, 3 vols., Cluj-Napoca: Clusium, p. s.v. frământáre
13. ^ Candrea, I.-A.; Adamescu, Gh. (1926–1931), Dicționarul enciclopedic ilustrat „Cartea Românească”, București: Cartea Românească, p. s.v. frămînta
14. ^ Ungureanu, Mădălina; Gînsac, Ana-Maria; Moruz, Alexandru (eds.), eRomLex: The First Romanian Bilingual Dictionaries (17th century), Iași: Universitatea „Alexandru Ioan Cuza”, https://scriptadacoromanica.ro, p. s.v. frămînt
15. ^ Tiktin, Hariton (2000–2005), Rumänisch-deutsches Wörterbuch, 3rd ed., revised by Paul Miron and Elsa Lüder, 3 vols., Cluj-Napoca: Clusium, p. s.v. frământătór
16. ^ Academia Română, Institutul de Lingvistică „Iorgu Iordan – Al. Rosetti” (2010), Micul dicționar academic, 2nd ed., 4 vols., București: Univers Enciclopedic Gold, p. 1, 940
17. ^ Macrea, Dimitrie; Petrovici, Emil (coord.) (1955–1957), Dicționarul limbii romîne literare contemporane, 4 vols., București: Editura Academiei Republicii Populare Romîne, p. 2, 326