bibelot

[bib-loh; French beebuh-loh]

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noun, plural bi·be·lots [bib-lohz; French beebuh-loh] /ˈbɪb loʊz; French bibəˈloʊ/.

a small object of curiosity, beauty, or rarity.

Origin of bibelot

1870–75; < French, equivalent to bibel- (expressive formation akin to bauble) + -ot noun suffix

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for bibelot

bauble, curio, curiosity, gewgaw, gimcrack, knickknack, novelty, ornament, trifle, gaud, whatnot

Examples from the Web for bibelot

Historical Examples of bibelot

Regarded as a bibelot, Mrs. Wigger was, I think, of the first perfection.
Turns about Town
Robert Cortes Holliday
I set to work at once, and in a very little while my bibelot was selected.
Certain Personal Matters
H. G. Wells
She was terribly hurt; in her heart she had always feared her husband regarded her as a bibelot.
The Twelfth Hour
Ada Leverson
Met him at the Bibelot once, and he was telling us how he attempted to make a fire with a couple of sticks.
The Sea-Wolf
Jack London

British Dictionary definitions for bibelot

bibelot

noun

an attractive or curious trinket

a miniature book

Word Origin for bibelot

C19: from French, from Old French beubelet, perhaps from a reduplication of bel beautiful

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

Word Origin and History for bibelot

"small curio," 1873, from French bibelot "knick-knack," from Old French beubelet "trinket, jewel" (12c.), from belbel "plaything," a reduplication of bel "pretty."