Etymology, Origin And Meaning Of Phrase Sacre Bleu By Etymonline

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Origin and history of sacre bleu

sacre bleu(interj.)

an English notion of a stereotypical French oath, 1869, from French sacré bleu, literally "holy blue," a euphemism for sacré Dieu (1768), "holy God." From Old French sacrer, from Latin sacrare "to make or declare sacred" (see sacred). Such things are never idiomatic. In an old French-language comic set in the U.S. Wild West, the angry cowboys say "Bloody Hell!"

also from 1869

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sacred(adj.)

late 14c., "hallowed, consecrated, or made holy by association with divinity or divine things or by religious ceremony or sanction," past-participle adjective from a now-obsolete verb sacren "to make holy" (c. 1200), from Old French sacrer "consecrate, anoint, dedicate" (12c.) or directly from Latin sacrare "to make sacred, consecrate; hold sacred; immortalize; set apart, dedicate," from sacer (genitive sacri) "sacred, dedicated, holy, accursed." OED (1989) writes that, in sacred, "the original ppl. notion (as pronunciation indicates) disappeared from the use of the word, which is now nearly synonymous with L. sacer."

This is from Old Latin saceres, from PIE root *sak- "to sanctify." Buck groups it with Oscan sakrim, Umbrian sacra and calls it "a distinctive Italic group, without any clear outside connections." De Vaan has it from a PIE root *shnk- "to make sacred, sanctify," and finds cognates in Hittite šaklai "custom, rites," zankila "to fine, punish." Related: Sacredness.

The Latin nasalized form is sancire "make sacred, confirm, ratify, ordain" (as in saint, sanction). An Old English word for "sacred" was godcund.

The meaning "of or pertaining to religion or divine things" (opposed to secular or profane) is by c. 1600. The transferred sense of "entitled to respect or reverence" is from 1550s.

Sacred cow as an object of Hindu veneration is by 1793; its figurative sense of "one who or that which must not be criticized" is in use by 1910 in U.S. journalism, reflecting Western views of Hinduism. Sacred Heart "the heart of Jesus as an object of religious veneration" is by 1823, short for Sacred Heart of Jesus or Mary.

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bluestockingThe phrase was borrowed by the neighbors in loan-translations such as French bas-bleu, Dutch blauwkous, German Blaustrumpf...cordonThe original sense is preserved in cordon bleu (1727) "the highest distinction," literally "blue ribbon," for the sky-blue...blue"of the color of the clear sky," c. 1300, bleu, blwe, etc., "sky-colored," also "livid, lead-colored," from Old French blo..., bleu "pale, pallid, wan, light-colored; blond; discolored; blue, blue-gray," from Frankish *blao or some other Germanic...For blue ribbon see cordon bleu under cordon. Blue whale is attested from 1851, so called for its color....Prince Charming1837, from French Roi Charmant, name of the hero of Comtesse d'Aulnoy's "L'Oiseau Bleu" (1697)....Prussian Prussian blue pigment (1724) came to English from French bleu de Prusse, so called for being discovered in Berlin,...interpolate1610s, "to alter or enlarge (a writing) by inserting new material," from Latin interpolatus, past participle of interpolare "alter, freshen up, polish;" of writing, "falsify," from inter "among, between" (see inter-) + polare, which is related to polire "to smoothe, polish," fromemancipate1620s, "set free from control," from Latin emancipatus, past participle of emancipare "put (a son) out of paternal authority, declare (someone) free, give up one's authority over," in Roman law, the freeing of a son or wife from the legal authority (patria potestas) of the pater sojournc. 1300, sojournen, "stay temporarily, dwell for a time; visit as a temporary resident;" also "reside permanently, dwell;" from Old French sojorner "stay or dwell for a time," from Vulgar Latin *subdiurnare "to spend the day" (source also of Italian soggiornare). This is a compouschedulelate 14c., sedule, cedule "ticket, label, slip of paper with writing on it" (a sense now obsolete), from Old French cedule (Modern French cédule), from Late Latin schedula "strip of paper" (in Medieval Latin also "a note, schedule"), diminutive of Latin scheda, scida "one of the

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‘cite’Page URL:https://www.etymonline.com/word/sacre%20bleuCopyHTML Link:<a href="https://www.etymonline.com/word/sacre%20bleu">Etymology of sacre bleu by etymonline</a>CopyAPA Style:Harper, D. (n.d.). Etymology of sacre bleu. Online Etymology Dictionary. Retrieved January 22, 2026, from https://www.etymonline.com/word/sacre%20bleuCopyChicago Style:Harper Douglas, "Etymology of sacre bleu," Online Etymology Dictionary, accessed January 22, 2026, https://www.etymonline.com/word/sacre%20bleu.CopyMLA Style:Harper, Douglas. "Etymology of sacre bleu." Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com/word/sacre%20bleu. Accessed 22 January, 2026.CopyIEEE Style:D. Harper. "Etymology of sacre bleu." Online Etymology Dictionary. https://www.etymonline.com/word/sacre%20bleu (accessed January 22, 2026).CopyRemove AdsAdvertisement

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TrendingDictionary entries near sacre bleu

• sackcloth
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• Sacramento
• sacre bleu
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• sacrilege

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