fainéant
[ fey-nee-uh nt; French fe-ney-ahn ]
/ ˈfeɪ ni ənt; French fɛ neɪˈɑ̃ /
adjective
Also fai·ne·ant [fey-nee-uh nt] /ˈfeɪ ni ənt/. idle; indolent.
noun, plural fai·né·ants [fey-nee-uh nts; French fe-ney-ahn] /ˈfeɪ ni ənts; French fɛ neɪˈɑ̃/.
an idler.
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Origin of fainéant
OTHER WORDS FROM fainéant
fai·ne·ance [fey-nee-uh ns] /ˈfeɪ ni əns/, nounWords nearby fainéant
faint, faintheart, fainthearted, faints, fainty, fainéant, fair, fair and square, fair ball, fair catch, fair copy
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020
Example sentences from the Web for faineant
Yours is the faineant spirit of the decadent, masquerading in the garb of a sham primitivism.
A Lost Leader|E. Phillips Oppenheim
British Dictionary definitions for faineant
fainéant
/ (ˈfeɪnɪənt, French fɛneɑ̃) /
noun
a lazy person; idler
adjective
indolent
Derived forms of fainéant
faineance or faineancy, nounWord Origin for fainéant
C17: from French, modification of earlier fait-nient (he) does nothing, by folk etymology from Old French faignant shirker, from faindre to be lazy
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
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