French Word of The Day: 09 Janvier 2019

Bonjour à tous et bienvenus ! Merci de m’avoir rejoint! Je suis tellement ravi de vous revoir. The word of the day for 09 janvier 2019 was ‘diriger’.

Origin:
This word’s first recorded usage in French dates back to the 14th century. It first appeared during the The Great Schism of 1378 in the year 1381.

The Great Schism of 1378 was the split within the Roman Catholic Church that lasted from 1378 to 1417. During this period of time, the papacy was split  between three men who claimed to be the true pope.  

The word came to fruition in order to describe the idea of leading the people in a certain direction, in other words, «faire aller dans un certain sens». 

To conclude this mini history lesson, the Great Schism of 1378 ended with the Council of Constance, which was held between 1414 and 1418. They agreed to set their differences aside and elected one true pope (this is the condensed story of what happened). 

Today, the word is very commonly used and is amongst the 4000 most commonly used words in the French Language according to Collins Dictionary.  ​

Jan Hus at the Council of Constance Karl Friedrich Lessing 1839

Etymologie:

The word derives from the Latin dīrigō, dīrigere meaning ‘to direct’, simplified into a first conjugation French verb. 

Translation:
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Collins Dictionary translates ‘diriger’ to mean the represent the following meanings in English:

1. to manage, to run
2. to supervise
3. to conduct
4. to steer
5. to point at, to aim at
6. to direct against, to aim at

Definition:

The word diriger is defined as the following by Le Dictionnaire:

1. conduire en exerçant un pouvoir, un commandement. Régler l’exécution d’une action, l’organiser
2. commander, administrer un organisme, une institution
3. exercer une autorité sur un groupe
4. (en particulier) exercer une autorité intellectuelle ou morale

 
Can You Use It In A Sentence?
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Le prof de Français a décidé que pour le débat de la semaine prochaine, les élèves du classe vont diriger la conversation.