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bon ton

American  
[bon ton, bawn tawn] / ˈbɒn ˈtɒn, bɔ̃ ˈtɔ̃ /

noun

  1. good or elegant form or style.

  2. something regarded as fashionably correct.

    The bon ton in this circle is to dress well and know influential people.

  3. fashionable society.

bon ton British  
/ bɔ̃ tɔ̃ /

noun

  1. sophisticated manners or breeding

  2. fashionable society

"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

Etymology

Origin of bon ton

1765–75; < French: literally, good tone. See boon 2, tone

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

But then, the bon ton, not content with padding only bums, moved the bustle round to the tummy at the front.

From Slate • Jul. 21, 2025

Bullock's Wilshire, tony Los Angeles department store, went after war-workers' dollars; Macy's, New York's people's store, waved farewell to the bon ton trade.

From Time Magazine Archive

The book reports Lucius' ad ventures with "butlered bon ton."

From Time Magazine Archive

She founded the American Art Students' Club�now Reid Hall�made a place for herself in the capital's bon ton, no easy feat.

From Time Magazine Archive

Is my philosophic Plato so soon metamorphosed to a bon ton enamarato?

From Alonzo and Melissa The Unfeeling Father by Mitchell, I. (Isaac)

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.