FromMiddle Englishtoucher, equivalent totouch +-er. The pejorative sense is derived from the sense of "touching" someone for money.
toucher (pluraltouchers)
Inherited fromMiddle Frenchtoucher, fromOld Frenchtochier, fromVulgar Latin*toccāre, *tuccāre(“to strike; to touch”), probably ofGermanic origin, or onomatopoetic.
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toucher
| infinitive | simple | toucher | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| compound | avoir + past participle | ||||||
| present participle orgerund1 | simple | touchant /tu.ʃɑ̃/ | |||||
| compound | ayant + past participle | ||||||
| past participle | touché /tu.ʃe/ | ||||||
| singular | plural | ||||||
| first | second | third | first | second | third | ||
| indicative | je (j’) | tu | il, elle, on | nous | vous | ils, elles | |
| (simple tenses) | present | touche /tuʃ/ | touches /tuʃ/ | touche /tuʃ/ | touchons /tu.ʃɔ̃/ | touchez /tu.ʃe/ | touchent /tuʃ/ |
| imperfect | touchais /tu.ʃɛ/ | touchais /tu.ʃɛ/ | touchait /tu.ʃɛ/ | touchions /tu.ʃjɔ̃/ | touchiez /tu.ʃje/ | touchaient /tu.ʃɛ/ | |
| past historic2 | touchai /tu.ʃe/ | touchas /tu.ʃa/ | toucha /tu.ʃa/ | touchâmes /tu.ʃam/ | touchâtes /tu.ʃat/ | touchèrent /tu.ʃɛʁ/ | |
| future | toucherai /tuʃ.ʁe/ | toucheras /tuʃ.ʁa/ | touchera /tuʃ.ʁa/ | toucherons /tuʃ.ʁɔ̃/ | toucherez /tuʃ.ʁe/ | toucheront /tuʃ.ʁɔ̃/ | |
| conditional | toucherais /tuʃ.ʁɛ/ | toucherais /tuʃ.ʁɛ/ | toucherait /tuʃ.ʁɛ/ | toucherions /tu.ʃə.ʁjɔ̃/ | toucheriez /tu.ʃə.ʁje/ | toucheraient /tuʃ.ʁɛ/ | |
| (compound tenses) | present perfect | present indicative ofavoir + past participle | |||||
| pluperfect | imperfect indicative ofavoir + past participle | ||||||
| past anterior2 | past historic ofavoir + past participle | ||||||
| future perfect | future ofavoir + past participle | ||||||
| conditional perfect | conditional ofavoir + past participle | ||||||
| subjunctive | que je (j’) | que tu | qu’il, qu’elle | que nous | que vous | qu’ils, qu’elles | |
| (simple tenses) | present | touche /tuʃ/ | touches /tuʃ/ | touche /tuʃ/ | touchions /tu.ʃjɔ̃/ | touchiez /tu.ʃje/ | touchent /tuʃ/ |
| imperfect2 | touchasse /tu.ʃas/ | touchasses /tu.ʃas/ | touchât /tu.ʃa/ | touchassions /tu.ʃa.sjɔ̃/ | touchassiez /tu.ʃa.sje/ | touchassent /tu.ʃas/ | |
| (compound tenses) | past | present subjunctive ofavoir + past participle | |||||
| pluperfect2 | imperfect subjunctive ofavoir + past participle | ||||||
| imperative | – | – | – | ||||
| simple | — | touche /tuʃ/ | — | touchons /tu.ʃɔ̃/ | touchez /tu.ʃe/ | — | |
| compound | — | simple imperative ofavoir + past participle | — | simple imperative ofavoir + past participle | simple imperative ofavoir + past participle | — | |
| 1 The French gerund is usable only with the prepositionen. | |||||||
2 In less formal writing or speech, these tenses may be found to have been replaced in the following way:
(Christopher Kendris [1995],Master the Basics: French, pp.77,78,79,81). | |||||||
FromOld Frenchtochier.
toucher
| infinitive | simple | toucher | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| compound | avoir + past participle | ||||||
| present participle1 orgerund2 | simple | touchant | |||||
| compound | present participle or gerund ofavoir + past participle | ||||||
| past participle | touché | ||||||
| singular | plural | ||||||
| first | second | third | first | second | third | ||
| indicative | ie (i’) | tu | il, elle | nous | vous | ilz, elles | |
| (simple tenses) | present | touche | touches | touche | touchons | touchez | touchent |
| imperfect | touchois,touchoys | touchois,touchoys | touchoit,touchoyt | touchions,touchyons | touchiez,touchyez | touchoient,touchoyent | |
| past historic | toucha | touchas | toucha | touchasmes | touchastes | toucherent | |
| future | toucherai,toucheray | toucheras | touchera | toucherons | toucherez | toucheront | |
| conditional | toucherois,toucheroys | toucherois,toucheroys | toucheroit,toucheroyt | toucherions,toucheryons | toucheriez,toucheryez | toucheroient,toucheroyent | |
| (compound tenses) | present perfect | present indicative ofavoir + past participle | |||||
| pluperfect | imperfect indicative ofavoir + past participle | ||||||
| past anterior | past historic ofavoir + past participle | ||||||
| future perfect | future ofavoir + past participle | ||||||
| conditional perfect | conditional ofavoir + past participle | ||||||
| subjunctive | que ie (i’) | que tu | qu’il, qu’elle | que nous | que vous | qu’ilz, qu’elles | |
| (simple tenses) | present | touche | touches | touche | touchons | touchez | touchent |
| imperfect | touchasse | touchasses | touchast | touchassions | touchassiez | touchassent | |
| (compound tenses) | past | present subjunctive ofavoir + past participle | |||||
| pluperfect | imperfect subjunctive ofavoir + past participle | ||||||
| imperative | – | – | – | ||||
| simple | — | touche | — | touchons | touchez | — | |
| compound | — | simple imperative ofavoir + past participle | — | simple imperative ofavoir + past participle | simple imperative ofavoir + past participle | — | |
| 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). | |||||||