douceur

American  

[doo-sur, doo-sœr] / duˈsɜr, duˈsœr /

noun

plural

douceurs

1. a gratuity; tip.

2. a conciliatory gift or bribe.

3. Archaic. sweetness or agreeableness.

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douceur British  

/ duːˈsɜː, dusœr /

noun

1. a gratuity, tip, or bribe

2. sweetness

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Etymology

Origin of douceur

1350–1400; Middle English < Middle French: sweetness < Late Latin dulcor, with initial syllable reshaped under influence of French doux, douce; see douce, -eur

Example Sentences

Nonetheless, an otherwise rollicking chapter on the Frankfurt Book Fair gradually saddens into an elegy for the douceur de vivre before the Revolution.

From Washington Post • Jun. 3, 2015

The collections ranged from 18th-century douceur de vivre to 20th-century avant-garde, prompting the childless Doucet to observe, "I was successively my grandfather, my father, my son, and my grandson."

From Architectural Digest • Aug. 27, 2014

Thus buttressed by a professional support-group, the bereaved writer projects his or her mask of mourning into the public domain and can expect to be treated with a kind of 19th-century douceur.

From The Guardian • Aug. 19, 2011

There is a society for the prevention of cruelty to animals, and it is not unusual to see its sign displayed in the market places, with the caution "Traitez les animaux avec douceur."

From Vanished towers and chimes of Flanders by Edwards, George Wharton

He found Lionel in the summer-house and delivered the yellow envelope, waiting dutifully to see if there was a prepaid reply, hoping for a possible douceur.

From The Gay Adventure A Romance by Bird, Richard