bœuf
See also: boeuf
French edit
Alternative forms edit
Etymology edit
Inherited from Middle French bœuf, from Old French buef, boef, from Latin bovem (“ox”), from Proto-Italic *gʷōs, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *gʷṓws (compare English cow).
The music sense derives from the expression “faire un Bœuf”, after the Parisian cabaret-bar Le Bœuf sur le toit where jam sessions were held.[1]
Pronunciation edit
Noun edit
bœuf m (plural bœufs)
- ox
- bullock, steer
- beef
- (music) jam session
- faire un bœuf ― to have a jam session
- (Quebec, slang, derogatory) a police officer; a pig
- 1996, Chrystine Brouillet, C'est pour mieux t'aimer, mon enfant, →ISBN, page 79:
- "T’as peut-être fait quelque chose de croche. Si toi tu le sais pas, les bœufs le savent, eux."
- "Maybe you did something wrong. Even if you don't know, the pigs will."
Derived terms edit
Related terms edit
Descendants edit
- Haitian Creole: bèf
References edit
Further reading edit
- “bœuf”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012.
Middle French edit
Etymology edit
From Old French buef, boef, from Latin bos, bovem.
Noun edit
bœuf m (plural bœufs)
- ox (animal)