1326: chief and chef Jul 29, 2018

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Even though both 'chief and 'chef' come to English via French, French doesn't distinguish between the two quite the same way. As can be seen with the Anglicized pronunciation of CH in 'chief', that term has existed in English longer and has had more time to be assimilated, coming from Old French, while 'chef' is only two or so centuries old in English. 'Chef' however comes from "chef de la cuisine" ("head of the kitchen") and so is associated with food in English, but in French it is just synonymous with 'boss' or 'head', or, if you will, 'chief'. The term 'chief' may now have the sense in English of a tribal leader, but this is completely unrelated to any French intentions or origins.
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