*SET-U

English word origin

Etymology of congé

Borrowed from French congé, from Latin commeātus (“a leave; permission for a leave”). As an architectural term, a French calque of ἀποφυγή (apophugḗ, “a leave, an escape; an architectural feature”).

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In this entry · 1 source sections

The source etymologies

Wiktionary via Kaikki / Wiktextract

The source reports below are imported and unreviewed by *SET-U. Separate numbered origins and differing source variants are preserved; agreement within this extraction is not independent corroboration.

Unnumbered source etymology

Original entry ↗
noun

Alternative form of congee: a leavetaking, a farewell, in various senses; a bow, a curtsey, or similar gestures whether or not used for taking leave. · Synonym of apophyge or cavetto, supports at the top or bottom of pillars, particularly rings or ferrils in the extremities of wooden pillars, added to provide support and prevent splintering, their imitation in stone, or a molding in the form of a quarter round.

verb

Alternative form of congee: to take leave, to bid farewell, in various senses; to bow, curtsey, etc.

Selected source glosses provide context, not a complete modern definition inventory

Borrowed from French congé, from Latin commeātus (“a leave; permission for a leave”). As an architectural term, a French calque of ἀποφυγή (apophugḗ, “a leave, an escape; an architectural feature”).

Relationships mentioned by the source

These are extracted mentions, not a timeline or a verified sequence of immediate parents.

Inspect preserved source fields

Raw extraction fields are retained for auditing. Their order does not establish ancestry.

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        "1": "en",
        "2": "fr",
        "3": "congé"
      },
      "expansion": "French congé"
    },
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "la",
        "3": "commeātus",
        "4": "",
        "5": "a leave; permission for a leave"
      },
      "expansion": "Latin commeātus (“a leave; permission for a leave”)"
    }
  ],
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    ],
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      "leave",
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      "ἀποφυγή",
      "ἀποφυγή#Ancient_Greek"
    ],
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      "leave"
    ],
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      "escape"
    ],
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    ],
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        "Alternative form of congee: a leavetaking, a farewell, in various senses; a bow, a curtsey, or similar gestures whether or not used for taking leave.",
        "Synonym of apophyge or cavetto, supports at the top or bottom of pillars, particularly rings or ferrils in the extremities of wooden pillars, added to provide support and prevent splintering, their imitation in stone, or a molding in the form of a quarter round."
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      "glosses": [
        "Alternative form of congee: to take leave, to bid farewell, in various senses; to bow, curtsey, etc."
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}

Where this record stops

This page does not supply an independently verified sound-change sequence, first-use manuscript or complete family tree unless a cited analysis explicitly establishes one. Missing detail here is a limit of this record—not a claim that humanity knows nothing more.

An older meaning does not determine what a word must mean today. Follow the sources, preserve disagreements, and keep ancestry separate from interpretation.

Contribute located evidence for congé →

Source and snapshot

Imported from Wiktionary contributors; extracted by Tatu Ylonen / Wiktextract / Kaikki.org. Selected fields are reformatted and grouped; wording, source identity and etymology sections are retained. CC-BY-SA-4.0 applies to the imported source material.

Dump: 2026-10-01 · Extracted: 2026-10-30. These are snapshot dates, not the word’s first attestation or the page’s revision date.

Source entry and bibliography ↗Wiktionary revision history ↗Acquisition and rights ledger
Machine-source provenance
Source SHA-256
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Import run
73216b9a9b78ed3830994bf853103716f5a4dc57099e371e9f8fdc468facca26
Permanent entry ID
w-Y29uZ8Op