debonair
or deb·o·naire, deb·on·naire
- courteous, gracious, and having a sophisticated charm: a debonair gentleman.
- jaunty; carefree; sprightly.
Origin of debonair
Synonyms for debonair
Examples from the Web for debonnaire
Historical Examples of debonnaire
Yet what a change they make in the beautiful, debonnaire countenance!
Molly BawnMargaret Wolfe Hamilton
Ferdinand the debonnaire, the well-loved, the generator of heirs.
The Mystery of the Lost DauphinEmilia Pardo Bazn
Her pretty face, usually so bright and debonnaire, is pale and sad.
Mrs. GeoffreyDuchess
General Debonnaire believed that a campaign was imminent, and prepared for it.
Penguin IslandAnatole France
He seemed to be riding through life for a fall, and rode with his chin up, gay and debonnaire.
The Isle of UnrestHenry Seton Merriman
debonair
debonnaire
- suave and refined
- carefree; light-hearted
- courteous and cheerful; affable
Word Origin for debonair
Word Origin and History for debonnaire
debonair
c.1200, "mild, gentle, kind courteous," from Old French debonaire, from de bon' aire "of good race," originally used of hawks, hence, "thoroughbred" (opposite of French demalaire). Used in Middle English to mean "docile, courteous," it became obsolete and was revived with an altered sense of "pleasant, affable" (1680s).