connoisseur

[ kon-uh-sur, -soor ]
See synonyms for connoisseur on Thesaurus.com
noun
  1. a person who is especially competent to pass critical judgments in an art, particularly one of the fine arts, or in matters of taste: a connoisseur of modern art.

  2. a discerning judge of the best in any field: a connoisseur of horses.

Origin of connoisseur

1
First recorded in 1705–15; from French; Old French conoiseor, from Latin cognōscitōr- (stem of cognōscitor ) “knower”; see cognoscible, -tor

Other words for connoisseur

Other words from connoisseur

  • con·nois·seur·ship, noun

Words Nearby connoisseur

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use connoisseur in a sentence

  • Ben Jonson loved the 'durne weed,' and describes its every accident with the gusto of a connoisseur.

  • They are all, however, marked by the stamp of genius, and give but little trouble to a well informed connoisseur.

  • I do not suppose that a connoisseur would call her beautiful, but she suggested health—health of body, of mind, of soul.

    The Everlasting Arms | Joseph Hocking
  • Mr. Spackles regarded Grandmother Penny and nodded with the air of a connoisseur.

    Scattergood Baines | Clarence Budington Kelland
  • Mr. Flick Wilder, the well-known art connoisseur, collects such things.

    The Woman Gives | Owen Johnson

British Dictionary definitions for connoisseur

connoisseur

/ (ˌkɒnɪˈsɜː) /


noun
  1. a person with special knowledge or appreciation of a field, esp in the arts

Origin of connoisseur

1
C18: from French, from Old French conoiseor, from connoistre to know, from Latin cognōscere

Derived forms of connoisseur

  • connoisseurship, noun

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012