habitant

¹ American  

[hab-i-tuhnt] / ˈhæb ɪ tənt /

noun

1. an inhabitant.

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habitant ² American  

[hab-i-tuhnt, a-bee-tahn] / ˈhæb ɪ tənt, a biˈtɑ̃ /

noun

habitants plural

1. a French settler in Canada or Louisiana, or a descendant of one, especially a farmer.

2. Canadian. a Canadian of French speech and culture, especially one residing in the province of Quebec.

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habitant British  

/ ˈhæbɪtənt /

noun

1. a less common word for inhabitant

2. 1. an early French settler in Canada or Louisiana, esp a small farmer

   2. a descendant of these settlers, esp a farmer

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Other Word Forms

Inflected Forms

noun

• habitants
  plural

Etymology

Origin of habitant¹

1480–90; < Latin habitant- (stem of habitāns ), present participle of habitāre to inhabit. See habitat, -ant

Origin of habitant²

1780–90; < French, present participle of habiter < Latin habitāre to inhabit

Example Sentences

We eat cans of Habitant pea soup, heated up on the two-burner stove in a dented pot, and slices of bread spread with molasses, and hunks of cheese.

From "Cat's Eye" by Margaret Atwood

Habitant sine labe cruoris   Semper ibi juvenes cum virgine: nulla senectus,   Nulla vis morbi, nullus dolor; omnia plena   Laetitiae; nihil hic proprium, communia quaeque.

From Tales of the Enchanted Islands of the Atlantic by Higginson, Thomas Wentworth

Even the elements, as the anonymous Habitant de Louisbourg complains in his wonderfully candid diary, seemed to have taken sides.

From The Great Fortress : A chronicle of Louisbourg 1720-1760 by Wood, William Charles Henry

"The enemy," says the Habitant de Louisbourg, "saluted us with our own cannon, and made a terrific fire, smashing everything within range."

From A Half-Century of Conflict - Volume II by Parkman, Francis

At present the beach is bare; the five rivers of the valley—the Gasperau, the Cornwallis, the Canard, the Habitant, the Perot—are empty.

From Acadia or, A Month with the Blue Noses by Cozzens, Frederic S.