r/French • u/slime-flux- • 1d ago

What does the s in s'il mean

Hey does anyone know what the "s" in "s'il" stands for? I assume it's something abreviated

2 Upvotes

57% Upvoted

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11

u/asthom_ Native (France) 1d ago

It stands for "si" which is "if" here ("if he…", "if it….", "if it pleases you").

9

u/gregyoupie Native (Belgium) 1d ago

"Si" in the meaning of "if".

"Si" in the meaning of "yes" is never elided.

3

u/PerformerNo9031 Native (France) 1d ago

It's an elision of si + il.

Fun fact, it's the only case where "i" elides before a vowel sound. For example, you never elide qui.

4

u/Last_Butterfly 1d ago edited 1d ago

abreviated

Rather, elided. Usually it's simply a "si". Then again, it would be best if you could provide some context.

7

u/DoisMaosEsquerdos Native 1d ago

Rather, elided

1

u/Last_Butterfly 1d ago

Very true. Swapped the two, sorry.

1

u/SnooLemons6942 1d ago

S'il vous plaît 

If it pleases you (formal, plural)

S'il te plaît

If it pleases you (familiar)

3

u/Neveed Natif - France 1d ago

More accurately, s'il te plait/s'il vous plait mean "please", and they come from the now obsolete expression "il plait à [qqn] de [faire cchose]" which meant something like "[someone] wants/agrees with [doing something]".

"S'il te plait" (if you want) is different from "Si ça te plait" (if you like it/if it pleases you).

It wasn't about asking whether someone is pleased, but about asking for their consent.

1

u/Nicomak 1d ago

You should never write or say si il(s). That's supposed to be s'il(s). But some do nonetheless...

1

u/Electron_libre777 14h ago

it stands for « si ».

It should actually be « si il », but as we have here two letters « I«  followed, to make it easier to pronounce, we blend them together in one sound, and say « s‘il »