pooir

Old French

Alternative forms

• podir, podeir (archaic)
• poeir, poëir
• povoir

Pronunciation

• (archaic) IPA^(key): /puˈðei̯ɾ/
• (classical) IPA^(key): /puˈoi̯ɾ/, (northern) /puˈei̯ɾ/
• (late) IPA^(key): /puˈ(v)o̯ɛɾ/, (northern) /puˈ(v)ei̯ɾ/

Verb

pooir

1. can; to be able to
   • c. 1155, Wace, Le Roman de Brut:

     Desfendés vous, si vous poés.

     Defend yourselves, if you can.

   • 1260–1267, Brunetto Latini, “Cist premiers livres parole de la naissance de toutes choses [This first book talks about the birth of all things]” (chapter 1), Livre I - Premiere partie, in Livres dou Tresor [Book of Treasures]; republished as Polycarpe Chabaille, compiler, Li livres dou tresor par Brunetto Latini‎^[1], Paris: Imprimerie impériale, 1863, page 1:

     si come li sires qui vuet en petit leu amasser choses de grandisme vaillance […] por acroistre son pooir […] i met il les plus chieres choses et les plus precieux joiaus que il puet, selonc sa bone entencion, tout autressi est li cors de cest livre compilez de sapience

     Just like the lord, who wishes to accumulate very valuable things in a tiny place […] in order to increase his power, […] puts there—according to his good intention—the dearest things and the most precious jewels he can, so the body of this book is filled with knowledge

Conjugation

This verb conjugates as a third-group verb. This verb has a stressed present stem pue distinct from the unstressed stem po, as well as other irregularities. Old French conjugation varies significantly by date and by region. The following conjugation should be treated as a guide.

    Conjugation of pooir (see also Appendix:Old French verbs)

		simple			compound
infinitive		pooir			avoir peü
gerund		en poänt, puissant			gerund of avoir + past participle
present participle		poänt, puissant
past participle		peü
person		singular			plural
		first	second	third	first	second	third
indicative		jo	tu	il	nos	vos	il
simple tenses	present	puis	puez	puet	poons	poez	pueent
	imperfect	pooie, poeie	pooies, poeies	pooit, poeit	poïiens, poïens	poïiez, poïez	pooient, poeient
	preterite	poi	peüs	pot	peümes	peüstes	porent
	future	porrai	porras	porra	porrons	porroiz, porreiz, porrez	porront
	conditional	porroie, porreie	porroies, porreies	porroit, porreit	porriiens, porriens	porriiez, porriez	porroient, porreient
compound tenses	present perfect	present tense of avoir + past participle
	pluperfect	imperfect tense of avoir + past participle
	past anterior	preterite tense of avoir + past participle
	future perfect	future tense of avoir + past participle
	conditional perfect	conditional tense of avoir + past participle
subjunctive		que jo	que tu	qu’il	que nos	que vos	qu’il
simple tenses	present	puisse	puisses	puisse, puist	puissons	puissez	puissent
	imperfect	peüsse	peüsses	peüst	peüssons, peüssiens	peüssoiz, peüssez, peüssiez	peüssent
compound tenses	past	present subjunctive of avoir + past participle
	pluperfect	imperfect subjunctive of avoir + past participle
imperative		–	tu	–	nos	vos	–
		—	—	—	—	—	—

Noun

pooir oblique singular, m (oblique plural pooirs, nominative singular pooirs, nominative plural pooir)

1. power; ability; capability
   • 1260–1267, Brunetto Latini, “Cist premiers livres parole de la naissance de toutes choses [This first book talks about the birth of all things]” (chapter 1), Livre I - Premiere partie, in Livres dou Tresor [Book of Treasures]; republished as Polycarpe Chabaille, compiler, Li livres dou tresor par Brunetto Latini‎^[2], Paris: Imprimerie impériale, 1863, page 1:

     si come li sires qui vuet en petit leu amasser choses de grandisme vaillance […] por acroistre son pooir […] i met il les plus chieres choses et les plus precieux joiaus que il puet, selonc sa bone entencion, tout autressi est li cors de cest livre compilez de sapience

     Just like the lord, who wishes to accumulate very valuable things in a tiny place […] in order to increase his power, […] puts there—according to his good intention—the dearest things and the most precious jewels he can, so the body of this book is filled with knowledge

Descendants

• Bourguignon: peuvoi
• Champenois: pouâr
• Franc-Comtois: povoi
• Gallo: pouair
• Lorrain: pouhoir
• Middle French: povoir
  • French: pouvoir
• Norman: pouveî
• Picard: puvoér
• Poitevin-Saintongeais: pevoer
• Walloon: poleur
• → Middle English: poer, power
  • English: power, powre
    • → German: Power
    • → Welsh: pŵer