ancien régime

American  

[ahn-syan rey-zheem] / ɑ̃ sjɛ̃ reɪˈʒim /

noun

French.

anciens régimes plural

1. the political and social system of France before the revolution of 1789.

2. the system of government during this period.

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ancien régime British  

/ ɑ̃sjɛ̃ reʒim /

noun

1. the political and social system of France before the Revolution of 1789

2. a former or outdated regime

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ancien régime Cultural  

1. The political and social order that prevailed in France before the French Revolution, built on a belief in absolute monarchy and the divine right of kings.

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• anciens régimes
  plural

Etymology

Origin of ancien régime

First recorded in 1790–95; from French; literally, “old rule”

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

ancien régime

The fresh beauty of Vigée Le Brun’s portrait of an ancien régime countess, its nonchalance hinting at the revolution to come.

From New York Times ● Sep. 2, 2021

It was a building that was all crisp Modernism on the outside, buttery ancien régime within.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 3, 2019

Everything is judged according to sacred precepts—“harmony,” “impulsion,” “self-carriage,” “submission”—that have come down intact from the ancien régime.

From The New Yorker ● Aug. 1, 2016

But she won admission to France’s royal academy and became one of the leading portraitists of the ancien régime.

From The Guardian ● Feb. 12, 2016

It is the old quarrel of classicists and Romanticists, of the ancien régime and the new school in literature, which runs nearly through every age.

From The Palace of Pleasure, Volume 1 by Painter, William