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Dictionnaire de la langue française

four-volume dictionary of the French language published in Paris by Hachette

Cross-disciplinary reference desk with index cards, atlas, dictionary and catalogue
General referenceInterpretive dossier study · Crown Archives visual atlas
Record originEnglish Wikipedia
Text licenseCC BY-SA 4.0
Source revisionAug 29, 2026
Entity authorityQ1983974 ↗
Source-derived summary

The Dictionnaire de la langue française (French pronunciation: [diksjɔnɛːʁ də la lɑ̃ɡ fʁɑ̃sɛːz]) by Émile Littré, commonly called the "Littré", is a four-volume dictionary of the French language published in Paris by Hachette.

The dictionary was originally issued in 30 parts, 1863–72; a second edition is dated 1872–77. A further edition is reported in 1877, published by Hachette.

Versions of Littré dictionary content that are searchable online (specifically, not of the type intended for download to physical devices) are available both on a site named after the dictionary's creator [1] and on a multifaceted site including among its diverse resources its own adaptation [2] of the dictionary.

The British Library's on-line integrated catalogue describes the contents as: 1o Pour la nomenclature...: 2o Pour la grammaire...: 3o Pour la signification des mots...: 4o Pour la partie historique...: 5o Pour l’étymologie..

Editorial summary

This brief starts where responsible research should: with the source description of “Dictionnaire de la langue française” as four-volume dictionary of the French language published in Paris by Hachette. Everything that follows is an evidence route, not borrowed authority.

Editorial reviewA concise reference frame for defining the subject, testing terminology and identifying the institution closest to the evidence. The current lead gives the account dated anchors—1863, 1872, 1877—that can be checked directly. The authority record carries competing date values—1841, 1863, 1846—which should remain separate until their references and qualifiers are resolved. The account is most persuasive where Dictionnaire, langue and française can be independently traced.
Editorial analysis

Why this record matters

The subject matters to the general reference register because the source frames it as four-volume dictionary of the French language published in Paris by Hachette. Its deeper value depends on whether names, dates, institutions and citations support that framing.

Evidence profile

Named sources, stable identifiers and responsible institutions provide the strongest route from overview to verifiable evidence. The source revision retrieved here is dated Aug 29, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q1983974. 1 of 3 selected statements include explicit references; 1 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 1863, 1872 and 1877.

Critical limits

A concise general-reference account can conceal disagreements about scope, terminology or the weight assigned to individual sources. The lead is largely declarative, so disagreement and counter-evidence require a deliberate search beyond the opening account. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.

How to read it

Use the entry as an orientation point, then follow its citations and revision history. Names, dates and institutional relationships should be checked against the original record.

Best used for
  • Subject orientation
  • Search vocabulary
  • Locating named sources
Verify next

The closest primary source, responsible institution and strongest cited specialist reference.

Three-step research path

  1. Establish the record: confirm the title “Dictionnaire de la langue française”, its source revision and the description used here.
  2. Expand the search: follow Dictionnaire de la langue française primary sources, Dictionnaire de la langue française archive and Dictionnaire research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
  3. Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.

Questions for further research

  1. Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “Dictionnaire de la langue française”?
  2. Which institution is responsible for the underlying evidence?
  3. Which cited source is closest to the event, object or claim?
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Source & attribution

This entry incorporates text from “Dictionnaire de la langue française” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.