Classées

Classées is the feminine plural form of the French verb classer in the passé composé and the feminine plural form of the related adjective. It describes items that have been placed into a category, ordered, or listed according to a system of classification. In sentences, classées agrees with feminine plural nouns, for example archives classées, œuvres classées, or pièces classées.

In usage, classées commonly appears in archival, museum, bibliographic, and cataloging contexts. It denotes that items have been systematically organized or catalogued. Examples include archives classées by date, œuvres classées by artist or period, and pièces classées by type. The term can also appear in legal or administrative language when referring to items that are officially organized or approved within a classification scheme. In the opposite sense, unclassified would be used for items not yet categorized.

The relationship to the verb classer is central: to classify, sort, or file. The past participle classé becomes classées when it accompanies feminine plural nouns, and it can also function adjectivally to describe a set of items that are already organized. In compound tenses, the form remains classées when the subject is feminine plural, as in les archives ont été classées.

Etymologically, classer derives from Latin classificare, through Old or Old French pathways, and shares roots with related terms such as classement (the act of classifying) and classification (the systematic arrangement into categories). See also classification, classement, and related cataloging terminology.