pooir
From Wiktionary, the free dictionary
Old French
Alternative forms
Etymology
From Vulgar Latin potēre, from Latin posse.
Pronunciation
Verb
pooir
- can; to be able to
- c. 1155, Wace, Le Roman de Brut:
- Desfendés vous, si vous poés.
- Defend yourselves, if you can.
- 1260–1267, Brunetto Latini, “Cist premiers livres parole de la naissance de toutes choses [This first book talks about the birth of all things]” (chapter 1), Livre I - Premiere partie, in Livres dou Tresor [Book of Treasures]; republished as Polycarpe Chabaille, compiler, Li livres dou tresor par Brunetto Latini, Paris: Imprimerie impériale, 1863, page 1:
- si come li sires qui vuet en petit leu amasser choses de grandisme vaillance […] por acroistre son pooir […] i met il les plus chieres choses et les plus precieux joiaus que il puet, selonc sa bone entencion, tout autressi est li cors de cest livre compilez de sapience
- Just like the lord, who wishes to accumulate very valuable things in a tiny place […] in order to increase his power, […] puts there—according to his good intention—the dearest things and the most precious jewels he can, so the body of this book is filled with knowledge
Conjugation
This verb conjugates as a third-group verb. This verb has a stressed present stem pue distinct from the unstressed stem po, as well as other irregularities. Old French conjugation varies significantly by date and by region. The following conjugation should be treated as a guide.
| simple | compound | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| infinitive | pooir | avoir peü | |||||
| gerund | en poänt, puissant | gerund of avoir + past participle | |||||
| present participle | poänt, puissant | ||||||
| past participle | peü | ||||||
| person | singular | plural | |||||
| first | second | third | first | second | third | ||
| indicative | jo | tu | il | nos | vos | il | |
| simple tenses |
present | puis | puez | puet | poons | poez | pueent |
| imperfect | pooie, poeie | pooies, poeies | pooit, poeit | poïiens, poïens | poïiez, poïez | pooient, poeient | |
| preterite | poi | peüs | pot | peümes | peüstes | porent | |
| future | porrai | porras | porra | porrons | porroiz, porreiz, porrez | porront | |
| conditional | porroie, porreie | porroies, porreies | porroit, porreit | porriiens, porriens | porriiez, porriez | porroient, porreient | |
| compound tenses |
present perfect | present tense of avoir + past participle | |||||
| pluperfect | imperfect tense of avoir + past participle | ||||||
| past anterior | preterite tense of avoir + past participle | ||||||
| future perfect | future tense of avoir + past participle | ||||||
| conditional perfect | conditional tense of avoir + past participle | ||||||
| subjunctive | que jo | que tu | qu’il | que nos | que vos | qu’il | |
| simple tenses |
present | puisse | puisses | puisse, puist | puissons | puissez | puissent |
| imperfect | peüsse | peüsses | peüst | peüssons, peüssiens | peüssoiz, peüssez, peüssiez | peüssent | |
| compound tenses |
past | present subjunctive of avoir + past participle | |||||
| pluperfect | imperfect subjunctive of avoir + past participle | ||||||
| imperative | – | tu | – | nos | vos | – | |
| — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
Noun
pooir oblique singular, m (oblique plural pooirs, nominative singular pooirs, nominative plural pooir)
- power; ability; capability
- 1260–1267, Brunetto Latini, “Cist premiers livres parole de la naissance de toutes choses [This first book talks about the birth of all things]” (chapter 1), Livre I - Premiere partie, in Livres dou Tresor [Book of Treasures]; republished as Polycarpe Chabaille, compiler, Li livres dou tresor par Brunetto Latini, Paris: Imprimerie impériale, 1863, page 1:
- si come li sires qui vuet en petit leu amasser choses de grandisme vaillance […] por acroistre son pooir […] i met il les plus chieres choses et les plus precieux joiaus que il puet, selonc sa bone entencion, tout autressi est li cors de cest livre compilez de sapience
- Just like the lord, who wishes to accumulate very valuable things in a tiny place […] in order to increase his power, […] puts there—according to his good intention—the dearest things and the most precious jewels he can, so the body of this book is filled with knowledge
Descendants
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