French Language > Lexicalia, Verbs

-Vindre Verbs

I recommend your becoming familiar with this small but rewarding group of similarly conjugated verbs. Most of them derive from Latin verbs with present stems ending in –ng–; just about all of them are echoed by one or more English words. To make sense of some of the English forms, it is helpful to know that a principal part of the Latin verb (namely, the “perfect passive participle”) had a base ending in –ct-.

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I. General Pattern

The present has two stems. The singular stem ends in a a nasal vowel ([ɛ̃] or [wɛ̃]); the plural stem ends in a denasalized vowel and the palatal nasal consonant [ɲ] ([ɛɲ] or [waɲ]).

The symbol V stands for any vowel a, e, or o.

• Infinitive: –Vindre ¹
• Derived from: Latin verbs with present stems ending –ng-.
• Present:

Present Looks Like	Present Sounds Like
-Vins	[ɛ̃] 2 or [wɛ̃] 3
-Vins	[ɛ̃] or [wɛ̃]
-Vint	[ɛ̃] or [wɛ̃]
-Vignons	[ɛɲõ] or [waɲõ]
-Vignez	[ɛɲe] or [waɲe]
-Vignent	[ɛɲ] or [waɲ]

• Past Participle: –Vint
• Simple Past: (je) -Vignis ⁴

An Example: Feindre

“to (dis)simulate (e.g., an emotion), to fake”

• From Latin: fingere
• Present: feins feins feint feignons feignez feignent [fɛ̃, fɛ̃, fɛ̃, fɛɲõ, fɛɲe, fɛɲ].
• Past Participle: feint [fɛ̃]
• Noun: une feinte [fɛ̃t] (a deceptive action, a pretense)
• Simple Past: (je) feignis [fɛɲi], etc.
• Corresponding English Words: to feign; a feint; fiction

In Context:

La crainte même de ne pas apprendre m’empêche d’être attentif: de peur d’impatienter celui qui me parle, je feins d’entendre; il va en avant, et je n’entends rien.
The very fear of failing to learn prevents me from being attentive: for fear of irritating the person speaking to me, I pretend to understand; he goes ahead, and I understand nothing. – J.J. Rousseau

Ah! qu’un tendre coeur est à plaindre / D’être réduit à feindre!
Ah! how a noble heart is to be pitied / That is reduced to feigning! – Philippe Quinauldt, Persée

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II. Verb Parade

Atteindre

“to reach” (e.g., a destination), “to strike” (an object)

• From Latin: CL attingere > *attangere
• Present: atteins, etc.
• Past Participle: atteint
• Noun: une atteinte (achieving, attaining something; harm done to something)
• Simple Past: (je) atteignis, etc.
• Corresponding English Words: to attain; attaint; attainted

In Context:

La hache du sachem, atteignant Adémar au visage, lui enleva une partie du front, du nez et des lèvres.
The sachem’s axe, striking Ademar’s face, cut off a part of his forehead, his nose, and his lips. – Chateaubriand

Ceindre

“to gird, to encircle” (e.g., a part of the body)

• From Latin: cingere
• Present: ceins, etc.
• Past Participle: ceint
• Noun: une ceinture (belt)
• Simple Past: ceignis, etc.
• Corresponding English Words: cincture; encincture

In Context:

Ton front est ceint de fleurons glorieux.
Thy brow is girt with glorious fleurons. – O, Canada

Contraindre

“to constrain”

• From Latin: constringere
• Present: contrains, etc.
• Past Participle: contraint
• Noun: une contrainte (limitation by force or threat of force on a person’s actions; constraint)
• Simple Past: contraignis, etc.
• Corresponding English Words: to constrain; a constraint; constriction

Craindre

“to fear”

• From Latin: CL tremere > *cremere ⁵
• Present: crains, etc.
• Past Participle: craint
• Noun: la crainte (fear)
• Simple Past: craignis, etc.

Enfreindre

“to violate” [a law]

• From Latin: CL infringere > *infrangere
• Present: enfreins, etc.
• Past Participle: enfreint
• Simple Past: enfreignis, etc.
• Corresponding English Words: to infringe

Éteindre

“to extinguish”

• From Latin: extinguere
• Present: éteins, etc.
• Past Participle: éteint
• Simple Past: éteignis, etc.
• Corresponding English Words: to extinguish; extinction

In Context:

D’eux est la parole remese, et éteinte la vive brese.
From them speech has been taken, / And the living ember put out. – Chrétien de Troyes

Eteins cette lumière! éteins cette lumière qui ne me laisse voir que ton visage!
Put out that light! Put out that light that lets me see only your face! – Paul Claudel

Étreindre

“to embrace with force”

• From Latin: stringere
• Present: étreins, etc.
• Past Participle: étreint
• Noun: une étreinte ⁶
• Simple Past: étreignis, etc.

In Context:

Zaza comprit précocement que Madame Mabille avait haï dès la première nuit et à jamais les étreintes conjugales.
Zaza precociously understood that Mrs Mabille had hated her husband’s embraces from the first night and forever after. — Simone de Beuvoir

Feindre (see above)

Joindre

“to join” = “to put different things together”

• From Latin: iungere
• Present: joins, etc.
• Past Participle: joint
• Noun: un joint (a joint)
• Simple Past: joignis, etc.
• Derivatives: adjoindre, conjoindre, disjoindre, enjoindre, rejoindre
• Corresponding English Words: to join; joint; junction, juncture

Oindre

“to anoint”

• From Latin: ungere
• Present: oins, etc.
• Past Participle: oint
• Noun: L’Oint du Seigneur (the Anointed One of the Lord)
• Simple Past: oignis, etc.
• Corresponding English Words: unction; anoint; ointment

In Context:

Mais du cors oindre fist folie, / Qu’il ne li estoit nus mestiers.
But in anointing his whole body she was very foolish, / Because she scarcely needed to. — Chrétien de Troyes

Peindre

‘”to paint”

• From Latin: pingere
• Present: peins, etc.
• Past Participle: peint
• Noun: la peinture (the act of painting; the result of painting; a painted canvas)
• Simple Past: peignis, etc.
• Derivative: dépeindre (to depict)
• Corresponding English Words: to paint; picture

Plaindre

“to lament, to sorrow over, to feel sorry for”

• From Latin: plangere
• Present: plains, etc.
• Past Participle: plaint
• Noun: une plainte (a lament)
• Simple Past: plaignis, etc.
• Corresponding English Words: to complain; plaintive; a plaintiff
• Derivative: complaindre; une complainte

In Context:

Il se plaignaient l’un l’autre.
They expressed their sorrow for each other. – The Professor

Ah! qu’un tendre coeur est à plaindre / D’être réduit à feindre!
Ah! how a noble heart is to be pitied / That is reduced to feigning! – Philippe Quinauldt, Persée

Poindre

“to pierce through”; “to begin to appear, as a point”

• From Latin: pungere
• Present: poins, etc.
• Past Participle: point
• Noun:
  1. un point
     • a period (in punctuation)
     • a point (in a game)
     • a dot (in a URL)
  2. une pointe
     • a breaking through, a beginning:la pointe du jour = “daybreak”
     • the sharp tip of something: sur la pointe des pieds= “on tiptoe”
     • “a piercing remark,” “a witty remark,” “a clever idea cleverly expressed” (at the end, say, of a sonnet)
• Simple Past: poignis, etc.
• Corresponding English Words: a point; poignant; a puncture; punctuation

In Context:

Le jour commençait à poindre.
Day was beginning to break.
La misère de ces pauvres êtres me poignait le cœur.
The wretchedness of these unfortunate human beans pierced my heart.
Une pointe de malice.
A sarcastic remark. – The Professor

Teindre

“to dye, to stain (with a color)”

• From Latin: tingere (to bathe in a liquid; to dye; to embue)
• Present: teins, etc.
• Past Participle: teint
• Nouns: un teint (complexion); une teinte (a tint; a tinge)
• Simple Past: teignis, etc.
• Corresponding English Words: taint; tint; tincture; tinge

1. Future and conditional are regularly formed from the infinitive.[↩]
2. = {-ains, -eins}[↩]
3. = {-oins}[↩]
4. Base -Vign- + typical vowel -i- + personal ending. See file on Simple Past.[↩]
5. Change of “t” to “c” seemingly due to influence of a Gaulish form.[↩]
6. Depending on context, étreinte can have a sexual meaning.[↩]

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