devoir
Americannoun
plural
devoirs-
an act of civility or respect.
-
devoirs, respects or compliments.
to pay devoirs to rank and celebrity.
-
something for which a person is responsible; duty.
Etymology
Origin of devoir
First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English devoir, deveir, dever, from Old French devoir ( Anglo-French deveir, dever ), from Latin dēbēre “to owe”; cf. debt
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.
Quand le burkini est apparu, j’étais heureuse pour ma sœur, qui était en vacances et pouvait enfin jouer sur la plage avec ses enfants plutôt que de devoir rester à l’ombre.
From New York Times • Sep. 2, 2016
From the polar heights of Great Neck came the Women's Club thereof, aesthetically accoutered to do their devoir.
From Time Magazine Archive
En même temps je crois devoir ajouter, que les manuscrits les plus précieux ne sortent jamais de la Bibliothèque, dans aucun cas, de même que les codes dont s'occupent les savants du pays.'
From Remarks on the practice and policy of lending Bodleian printed books and manuscripts by Chandler, Henry W.
"I hope you do not deem the devoir of a country gentleman incompatible with the duties of a statesman?"
From The Knight Of Gwynne, Vol. I (of II) by Lever, Charles James
Strip him to-morrow of his scarlet, and he will do his devoir as nobly in the white jacket of the Austrian grenadier or the brown one of the Portuguese cazador.
From Blackwood's Edinburgh Magazine, Volume 60, No. 370, August 1846 by Various
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.
