bon ton
[bon ton; French bawn tawn]
- good or elegant form or style.
- something regarded as fashionably correct: The bon ton in this circle is to dress well and know influential people.
- fashionable society.
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Origin of bon ton
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
Related Words for bon ton
decorum, civility, rightness, decency, fitness, orderliness, properness, decorousness, seemliness, order, correctitude, society, gentryExamples from the Web for bon ton
Historical Examples of bon ton
Oh, bright divinity, why hide those radiant charms in sylvan shades, when charms of fashion and bon-ton beckon you away!
The Art of AmusingFrank Bellew
Lonely in his selfishness was he left to breathe out the small soul of a man of bon-ton!
Godolphin, CompleteEdward Bulwer-Lytton
Shelby drifted back to the main street and found the Bon-Ton Grocery where it had been when he deserted the wagon.
In a Little TownRupert Hughes
Emmerich was not a common mender of "old soles," but was the shoemaker to the bon-ton of Baltimore.
Between the LinesHenry Bascom Smith
Who entered here, though his brow were tall and his spirit strong, left his bon-ton behind.
The Army Mule and Other War SketchesHenry A. Castle
bon ton
- sophisticated manners or breeding
- fashionable society
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Word Origin for bon ton
literally: good tone
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
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