arrondissement

American  

[uh-ron-dis-muhnt, ar-uhn-dees-, a-rawn-dees-mahn] / əˈrɒn dɪs mənt, ˌær ənˈdis-, a rɔ̃ disˈmɑ̃ /

noun

arrondissements plural

1. the largest administrative division of a French department, comprising a number of cantons.

2. an administrative district of certain large cities in France.

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arrondissement British  

/ arɔ̃dismɑ̃ /

noun

1. the largest administrative subdivision of a department

2. a municipal district of certain cities, esp Paris

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Other Word Forms

Inflected Forms

noun

• arrondissements
  plural

Etymology

Origin of arrondissement

1800–10; < French, equivalent to arrondiss- (variant stem of arrondir to round out; see a- ⁵, round ¹) + -ment -ment

Example Sentences

One afternoon Chris Newens, an English culinary journalist, was sitting in Le Mistral, a bistro in the 20th arrondissement, when he overheard three men discuss the dominant cuisine of the neighborhood.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 10, 2026

He went to secondary school in the wealthy bourgeois 16th arrondissement of Paris, where he said he felt an uncomfortable outsider, and later attended the elite ENA administration school.

From BBC • Mar. 23, 2026

Go to the Marché des Enfants Rouges in the 3rd arrondissement in Paris for fresh oysters and a cheese plate, or to the Marché des Carmes in Toulouse for some lamb chops and fried scallops.

From Barron's • Mar. 8, 2026

I barged in on Romane and Justine, 20-something women having a late lunch at a sidewalk table in the third arrondissement.

From Los Angeles Times • May 3, 2025

I checked in to a hotel in the 6th arrondissement.

From "Between the World and Me" by Ta-Nehisi Coates