1845, Alexandre Dumas,La Reine Margot, vol. I, chap. 4:
Je suis incapable de rassembler deux idées ; votre vue m'a ébloui. Je nepense plus, j'admire.
I am unable to unite two ideas; your aspect has dazzled my mind. I am notthinking anything any longer, I admire.
1932, Louis-Ferdinand Céline,Voyage au bout de la nuit:
Vous n'êtes pas venu ici pourpenser, mais pour faire les gestes qu'on vous commandera d'exécuter… Nous n'avons pas besoin d'imaginatifs dans notre usine. C'est de chimpanzés dont nous avons besoin…
You're not here in order tothink, but to do the movements one has told you to perform… We don't need any visionaries in our factory. It's chimpanzees we need…
1992, David E. Walker, “La pauvreté de la foi”, dansLe Québec sceptique, n° 21 (hiver 1992), p. 32:
Ma tâche vise davantage à leur enseigner commentpenser et non que penser. J'espère ainsi que lorsqu'ils auront appris àpenser, mes élèves pourront réfléchir par eux-mêmes plutôt que de laisser les autres le faire à leur place.
My task is rather aimed at teaching them how tothink, not what to think. Having said that, I hope that, when they have learned tothink, my pupils will be able to reflect by themselves rather than let others do it in their stead.
1393, G. E. Brereton, J. M. Ferrier, editors,Ménagier,I, VI, p. 78:
Penser à mal.
To have a bad intention.
2011, Umberto Eco,Le cimetière de Prague, traduit de l'italien par Jean-Noël Schifano, ed. Grasset, chap. 6:
Rebaudengo était une fripouille et, si jepense à tout ce que j'ai fait après, j'ai l'impression de n'avoir fait des fripouilleries qu'à des fripouilles.
Rebaudengo was a rascal, and if Ithink of all the things I have done afterwards, I am under the impression of not having played tricks but to rascals.
(with infinitive) tointend to do,aim at doing something[ca. 1200 inHist. Joseph, 299 ds T.-L.]
Jepensais aller vous voir.
Ifancied paying you a visit.
Quepensez-vous faire ?
What do youintend to do?
(transitive) to have something in one's mind (c. 1220 inBarlaam et Josaphat, ed. C. Appel, 5623)
C'est un homme qui ne dit jamais ce qu'ilpense.
He's a man who never says what hethinks.
Ilpense beaucoup de choses qu'il ne dit pas.
Hethinks a lot of things he doesn't say.
(withà + infinitive) to intend to do, aim to do something[1306 in Joinville, ed. N. L. Corbett, § 612]
À quoipensez-vous de vous conduire ainsi ?
What are youplaying at by behaving like this?
Je suis trop de vos amis pour avoirpensé à vous nuire.
I am too much your friend tothink of harming you.
Jepensais à aller vous voir hier.
Iconsidered visiting you yesterday.
(withmal,obsolete) to intend to do something bad[15th century inIsopet III de Paris, ed. J. Bastin, vol. 2, p. 401]
penser mal ―(please add an English translation of this usage example)
(withà + object) totake care of[from 1636, in Monet]
Il nous a reçus admirablement, il apensé à tout.
He has welcomed us admirably, he hasthought of everything.
(withbien, in politics, religion, moral) to have opinions inaccordance with theagreedprinciples[1823, inCourier]
bienpenser ―(please add an English translation of this usage example)
Todaypenser is commonly construed in one of the following ways:
"penser queproposition" — "to think (that)clause". (Note: Theque is mandatory.)
Whenpenser is in the negative or interrogative, the clause afterque takes a verb in the subjunctive. If it is in the affirmative, it takes the indicative. In spoken French, the interrogative also tends to be followed by the indicative.
"Je pense qu'il est parti." — "I think (that) he's left."
"Je ne pense pas qu'il soit parti." — "I don't think (that) he's left."
"penser àsubstantif" — "to think aboutnoun".
"Je pense à mon frère." — "I'm thinking about my brother."
"Je pense à elle." — "I'm thinking about her." (Not *"Je lui pense.")
"penseradverbe [especiallybien = well,mal = ill] desubstantif" — "to thinkadverb ofnoun". (Note: in questions, the adverb is represented byque, not bycomment as might be expected.)
"Je pense très bien de lui." — "I think very well of him."
"Qu'est-ce que tu en penses ?" — "What do you think of it?"
"penserinfinitif" — "to think one willbare infinitive".
"Je pense y aller demain." — "I think I'll go there tomorrow."
"penser àinfinitif" — "to think aboutgerund".
"Je pense à y aller demain." — "I'm thinking about going there tomorrow."
1 The present participle was variable in gender and number until the 17th century (Anne Sancier-Château [1995],Une esthétique nouvelle: Honoré d'Urfé, correcteur de l'Astrée, p.179). TheFrench Academy would eventually declare it not to be declined in 1679.
2 The gerund was held to be invariable by grammarians of the early 17th century, and was usable with prepositionen, as inModern French, although the preposition was not mandatory (Anne Sancier-Château [1995],op. cit., p.180).
2013 March, Geraint Jennings, “Mar martello”, inThe Town Crier[1], archived fromthe original on13 March 2016, page20:
Trop d'couques gâtent la soupe sans doute, et ché s'sait mus d'penser coumme tchi agrandi la pâte ou affêtchi la soupe au run d'hèrtchîngni tréjous pouor la manniéthe d'la cop'thie, ou la manniéthe dé couté ou d'dréch'rêsse.
Too many cooks no doubt spoil the broth, and it'd be better tothink about how to make the pie bigger or thicken the soup instead of always arguing over how to carry out the cutting or what type of knife or ladle to use.
This verb conjugates as a first-group verb ending in-er. The forms that would normally end in *-ss, *-st are modified tos,st. Old French conjugation varies significantly by date and by region. The following conjugation should be treated as a guide.
