sentimental

Forms

sentimental m or n (feminine singular sentimentală, masculine plural sentimentali, feminine/neuter plural sentimentale)^[1] Older forms are santimental and sintimental; the second was reshaped after simți “to feel”.^[2][3] Costinescu's dictionary of 1870 lists the word under simțimental.^[4]

Etymology

It is borrowed from French sentimental, the source DEX and the MDN give;^[5][6] MDA2, NODEX and DLR also give Latin sentimentalis, and Tiktin and the DN also name Italian sentimentale.^{[7][2][3][8][5][6]} The French word comes from English sentimental.^[1] Scriban derives it within French from sentiment with the suffix -al, and doubts that it had to come through English and Sterne's “A Sentimental Journey” of 1768.^[9]

Earliest recorded meaning

Tiktin's first record is in Mumuleanu, in 1825.^[8] The DLR quotes Heliade-Rădulescu for poezie sentimentală “sentimental poetry”, a kind of verse.^[3]

Semantic evolution

In the DLR and MDA2 the oldest sense is “of love, amorous”, as in a sentimental comedy.^[3][2] Modern dictionaries put first the sense “expressing or arousing tender, nostalgic feeling”, often disparaging, and use it of people who are easily moved.^[7] Șăineanu already gave the ironic use, of someone who affects a feeling he does not have.^[10] As a noun it names a sentimental person.^[6][7]

Timeline

• 1825 – in Mumuleanu, the first record.^[8]
• 19th century – poezie sentimentală in Heliade-Rădulescu.^[3][2]
• 1870 – Costinescu lists it under simțimental.^[4]

Meanings

Adjective

1. Expressing or arousing tender, nostalgic feelings;^[1] (derogatory) full of sentimentalism, mawkish.^[7][1]
2. Relating to feelings, especially to love.^[7][2]
3. (of people, often as a noun) Very sensitive, easily moved by tender feelings.^[7][6]

Word family

• sentimentalism

Related words

• sentiment
• French sentimental

Usage notes

Viață sentimentală is a person's love life;^[11] educație sentimentală is the education of the feelings.^[11][2]

References

1. ^ a b c d Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f Academia Română, Institutul de Lingvistică „Iorgu Iordan – Al. Rosetti” (2010), Micul dicționar academic, 2nd ed., 4 vols., București: Univers Enciclopedic Gold, p. 2, 860
3. ^ a b c d e Academia Română (1965–2010), Dicționarul limbii române (DLR), serie nouă, tom I–XIX, București: Editura Academiei Române, p. s.v. sentimental
4. ^ a b Costinescu, Ion (1870), Vocabularu romano-francesu, 2 vols., Bucuresci, p. 2, 504
5. ^ a b Marcu, Florin (2000), Marele dicționar de neologisme, București: Saeculum Vizual, p. s.v. sentimental
6. ^ a b c d Marcu, Florin; Maneca, Constant (1986), Dicționar de neologisme, 3rd ed., București: Editura Academiei Republicii Socialiste România, p. s.v. sentimental
7. ^ a b c d e f DEX (2009), Dicționarul explicativ al limbii române [Explanatory dictionary of the Romanian language], Bucharest: Editura Univers Enciclopedic, p. 1006
8. ^ 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. sentimental
9. ^ Scriban, August (1939), Dicționaru limbii românești (etimologii, înțelesuri, exemple, citațiuni, arhaizme, neologizme, provincializme), Iași: Presa Bună, p. 1189
10. ^ Șăineanu, Lazăr (1929), Dicționar universal al limbei române, 6th ed., Craiova: Scrisul Românesc, p. 1, 584
11. ^ a b Academia Română, Institutul de Lingvistică „Iorgu Iordan – Al. Rosetti” (2002), Noul dicționar explicativ al limbii române, București: Litera Internațional, p. s.v. sentimental