élan

[ey-lahn, ey-lan; French ey-lahn]

See more synonyms for élan on Thesaurus.com

noun

dash; impetuous ardor: to dance with great élan.

Origin of élan

1875–80; French, Middle French eslan a dash, rush, noun derivative of eslancer to dart, equivalent to es- ex-¹ + lancer to lance¹

Can be confusedéclat élan

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for elan

Contemporary Examples

The romance of elan energized the volunteers who flocked to the colors in the early years of the struggle.
Lawrence of Arabia Became Popular as the Dashing Antithesis of the War in Europe
Jack Schwartz
December 21, 2013
Now that we know about DNA, we no longer need an elan vital.
Is the Brain No Different From a Light Switch? The Uncomfortable Ideas of the Philosopher Daniel Dennett
Jonathan Weiner
May 19, 2013
As the indictment notes, Martoma was regarded by an SAC official as a “one-trick pony with Elan.”
The Insider-Trading Cloud Hanging Over SAC Capital’s Steven A. Cohen
Daniel Gross
November 27, 2012

Historical Examples

Besides, there isnt any dead body awaiting his elan on that ship or any ship.
A Place in the Sun
C.H. Thames
The course of the aqueduct from Elan to Birmingham was marked by a thin red line.
The Blue Germ
Martin Swayne
My friend Sarakoff and I introduced the germ that we discovered into the Elan reservoirs.
The Blue Germ
Martin Swayne
On the north lay the river Elan and on the south the steep side of a mountain towered up against the luminous sky.
The Blue Germ
Martin Swayne
Elan was its characteristic—but it was hard to reduce to the stratified regularity of an army.
Four Years in Rebel Capitals
T. C. DeLeon

British Dictionary definitions for elan

élan

noun

a combination of style and vigourhe performed the concerto with élan

Word Origin

C19: from French, from élancer to throw forth, ultimately from Latin lancea lance

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

Word Origin and History for elan

n.

1877, from French élan (16c.), "spring, bound, impetus," noun derived from élancer "to rush, dart," from Old French elancer, from e- "out" (see ex-) + lancer "to throw," originally "to throw a lance," from Late Latin lanceare, from Latin lancea (see lance (n.)).

élan

Origin of .css-1fxfie5{font-size:22px;}@media (max-width:768px){.css-1fxfie5{font-size:18px;margin:0 10px 10px 0;word-break:break-all;word-wrap:break-word;-webkit-hyphens:auto;-moz-hyphens:auto;-ms-hyphens:auto;hyphens:auto;line-height:22px;}}élan

Examples from the Web for elan

Contemporary Examples

The romance of elan energized the volunteers who flocked to the colors in the early years of the struggle.

Now that we know about DNA, we no longer need an elan vital.

As the indictment notes, Martoma was regarded by an SAC official as a “one-trick pony with Elan.”

Historical Examples

Besides, there isnt any dead body awaiting his elan on that ship or any ship.

The course of the aqueduct from Elan to Birmingham was marked by a thin red line.

My friend Sarakoff and I introduced the germ that we discovered into the Elan reservoirs.

On the north lay the river Elan and on the south the steep side of a mountain towered up against the luminous sky.

Elan was its characteristic—but it was hard to reduce to the stratified regularity of an army.

élan

Word Origin

Word Origin and History for elan

n.

Origin of élan