putain

putain

French

Alternative forms

• p*tain (censored)

Etymology

From Old French putain, originally the oblique case of pute (“dirty woman”) formed with the suffix -ain, from Vulgar Latin pūtta, from Latin pūta (“girl”). Compare with salope, Italian puttana.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /py.tɛ̃/

• audio

  (file)

• Homophone: putains

Noun

putain f (plural putains)

1. (vulgar) whore, hooker

   Synonym: pute

2. (derogatory, vulgar, slang) bitch, cow (an unpleasant woman)

   Synonym: pute

Interjection

putain

1. (vulgar) fuck, fucking hell, bloody hell

   Synonyms: punaise, (euphemistic) purée

Derived terms

• fils de putain
• ptn
• putain de bordel de merde
• putain de merde
• putain de (noun)

 

Further reading

• “putain”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012.

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Norman

Etymology

From Old French putain.

Noun

putain f (plural putains)

1. (Jersey) whore

   Synonym: chèrch'rêsse

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Old French

Etymology

From pute with the suffix -ain, -aine, or from Vulgar Latin pūtta/*pūttāna, from Latin pūta (“girl”)[1]. Compare Old Occitan putan(a).Latin putta (“prostitute”) is attested in the sixth century (Gregory of Tours). The change of meaning from "girl" to "prostitute" is due to euphemism, a process that is well known to other periods and languages.[2]

Noun

putain f (oblique plural putains, nominative singular pute, nominative plural putains)

1. (vulgar) whore, prostitute, bitch

Descendants

• French: pute, putain
• → Welsh: putain
• → Friulian: putan, putane
• → Italian: puttana
• → Piedmontese: putan-a

References

1. Pianigiani, Ottorino (1907), “puttana”, in Vocabolario etimologico della lingua italiana (in Italian), Rome: Albrighi & Segati
2. “puttana” in: Alberto Nocentini, Alessandro Parenti, “l'Etimologico — Vocabolario della lingua italiana”, Le Monnier, 2010, →ISBN

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Scottish Gaelic

Noun

putain m

1. genitive singular of putan (“button, key”)

Mutation

Scottish Gaelic mutation
Radical	Lenition
putain	phutain
Note: Some of these forms may be hypothetical. Not every possible mutated form of every word actually occurs.

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Welsh

Etymology

From Old French putain, originally the oblique case of pute (“dirty woman”) formed with the suffix -ain, from Vulgar Latin putta, from Latin puta (“girl”). Cognate with French putain, Italian puttana.

Pronunciation

• (North Wales, standard, colloquial) IPA^(key): /ˈpɨ̞tai̯n/
  • (North Wales, colloquial) IPA^(key): /ˈpɨ̞tɛn/
• (South Wales, standard) IPA^(key): /ˈpɪtai̯n/
  • (South Wales, colloquial) IPA^(key): /ˈpɪtɛn/

• Audio

  (file)

Noun

putain f (plural puteiniaid)

1. prostitute, harlot, whore

Derived terms

• puteinaidd (“whorish”, adjective)
• puteindy m (“whorehouse”)
• puteinio (“whore”, verb)

Mutation

Welsh mutation
radical	soft	nasal	aspirate
putain	butain	mhutain	phutain
Note: Some of these forms may be hypothetical. Not every possible mutated form of every word actually occurs.