Intensité et délocutivité dans les adverbes en -ment

The diachronic study of a series of adverbs derived from what seems to be a noun — diablement, bigrement, fichtrement, among others — provides the basis for positing the delocutive origin of these adverbs. The study illustrates how their high degree value is developed from a specific enunciative strategy, used by the speaker of the corresponding interjections: Diable !, Bigre !, Fichtre !, etc. The article highlights various syntactical, relational criteria which characterise this type of adverb, contrasting them with others such as drôlement or prodigieusement, which also denote intensity. Finally, the adverbs in question are included in the category of “markers of enunciative attitude”.