demimonde

[ dem-ee-mond; French duh-mee-mawnd ]

/ ˈdɛm iˌmɒnd; French də miˈmɔ̃d /

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noun

(especially during the last half of the 19th century) a class of women who have lost their standing in respectable society because of indiscreet behavior or sexual promiscuity.

a demimondaine.

prostitutes or courtesans in general.

a group whose activities are ethically or legally questionable: a demimonde of investigative journalists writing for the sensationalist tabloids.

a group characterized by lack of success or status: the literary demimonde.

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Origin of demimonde

1850–55; <French, equivalent to demi-demi- + monde world (<Latin mundus)

Words nearby demimonde

demilitarized zone, de Mille, demilune, demimetope, demimondaine, demimonde, demineralization, demineralize, demineralizer, de minimis, de-mining

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2022

How to use demimonde in a sentence

He is fascinated by the demimonde and charmed by Mafia hit men.
‘Exorcist’ Director William Friedkin Tells All in New Memoir|Lloyd Grove|April 17, 2013|DAILY BEAST
I write a poem a day, paeans to the bohemian demimonde with titles like “three a.m. and ‘trane’ on sax.”
Juvenilia: A Bibliography|Eric Puchner|February 15, 2010|DAILY BEAST
In this spirit, in True Blood, the attempt to mainstream the denizens of a nihilistic demimonde is, at best, a bit of a farce.
Vampire Conservatives|Michelle Goldberg|July 18, 2009|DAILY BEAST
He is addicted to his demimonde of Damon Runyon hoods and eccentric celebrities.
My Trial With Blago's Lawyer|Conrad Black|December 26, 2008|DAILY BEAST

I have frequently heard women of the demimonde referred to as dangerous women.
The Wasted Generation|Owen Johnson
These we should now rank among the demimonde, but the Greek point of view was different from ours.
Woman in Science|John Augustine Zahm
She said in French—she is weak in French—that she had been spending a Sunday afternoon in a gathering of the "demimonde."
The Letters Of Mark Twain, Volume 4, 1886-1900|Mark Twain (Samuel Clemens)
Nana dealt with the vast demimonde of Paris, and while it was his greatest popular success, was in every sense his worst book.
A Zola Dictionary|J. G. Patterson

British Dictionary definitions for demimonde

demimonde

/ (ˌdɛmɪˈmɒnd, French dəmimɔ̃d) /

noun

(esp in the 19th century) those women considered to be outside respectable society, esp on account of sexual promiscuity

any social group considered to be not wholly respectable

Word Origin for demimonde

C19: from French, literally: half-world

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