enceinte

[en-seynt, ahn-sant; French ahn-sant]

See more synonyms for enceinte on Thesaurus.com

adjective

pregnant; with child.

Origin of enceinte

1590–1600; < Middle French < Late Latin incincta, perhaps literally “ungirded,” equivalent to Latin in- in-³ + cincta, feminine of cinctus, past participle of cingere to belt, gird, surround

enceinte

[en-seynt, ahn-sant; French ahn-sant]

noun, plural en·ceintes

[en-seynts, en-sants; French ahn-sant] /ɛnˈseɪnts, ɛnˈsænts; French ɑ̃ˈsɛ̃t/.

a wall or enclosure, as of a fortified place.
the place enclosed.

Origin of enceinte

1700–10; < French: enclosure, also girding fence or rampart < Latin incincta, noun use of feminine of incinctus girded in (past participle of incingere), equivalent to in- in-² + cing- gird + -tus past participle suffix

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

Related Words for enceinte

expecting, fortification, gestate

Examples from the Web for enceinte

Historical Examples of enceinte

This caponnière is on a lower level than the enceinte of the place.
The Life of Gordon, Volume I
Demetrius Charles Boulger
There are many signs of that result—not least that your sister is enceinte.
The Letters of Cicero, Volume 1
Marcus Tullius Cicero
Girl or wife, I don't know which; but I can swear she was enceinte.
Sister Anne (Novels of Paul de Kock, Volume X)
Charles Paul de Kock
Portions of the wall of enceinte are to be found upon the south and east.
British Castles
Charles H. Ashdown
She discovered that she was enceinte and joyfully informed Julien of the fact.
The Red and the Black
Stendhal

British Dictionary definitions for enceinte

enceinte

adjective

another word for pregnant

Word Origin for enceinte

C17: from French, from Latin inciēns pregnant; related to Greek enkuos, from kuein to be pregnant

enceinte

noun

a boundary wall enclosing a defended area
the area enclosed

Word Origin for enceinte

C18: from French: enclosure, from enceindre to encompass, from Latin incingere, from cingere to gird

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 enceinte

adj.

c.1600, insente, from French enceinte "pregnant" (12c.), from Late Latin incincta (source of Italian incinta), usually explained as "ungirt," from Latin in-, privative prefix (see in- (1)), + cincta, fem. of cinctus, past participle of cingere "to gird" (see cinch). Modern form is 18c., perhaps a reborrowing from French.