fainéant

American  

[fey-nee-uhnt, fe-ney-ahn] / ˈfeɪ ni ənt, fɛ neɪˈɑ̃ /

adjective

1. Also faineant idle; indolent.

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noun

fainéants plural

1. an idler.

fainéant British  

/ ˈfeɪnɪənt, fɛneɑ̃ /

noun

1. a lazy person; idler

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adjective

1. indolent

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• faineance
  noun

Inflected Forms

noun

• fainéants
  plural

Etymology

Origin of fainéant

First recorded in 1610–20; from French, earlier fait-nient, literally, “he does nothing,” folk etymology of Old French faignant “idler,” noun use of present participle of se faindre “to shirk ”; see feign, faint

Example Sentences

Let me tell you, Lady Glencora, that a fainéant government is not the worst government that England can have.

From Phineas Finn The Irish Member by Trollope, Anthony

And whereas Sieyès condemned his grand functionary to the repose of a roi fainéant, Bonaparte secured to him practically all the powers assigned by Sieyès to the Consuls for Peace and for War.

From The Life of Napoleon I (Volume 1 of 2) by Rose, John Holland

It is only for the loafer that he has no pity; when he has called a fellow-creature fainéant, he has used the strongest invective in his vocabulary.

From English Pharisees and French Crocodiles and Other Anglo-French Typical Characters by O'Rell, Max

You call me trifler, fainéant, And bid me give my life an aim!—

From Point Lace and Diamonds by Day, Francis

Then Aunt Ju took her seat, and was able for the next hour and a half to occupy her arm-chair with gratifying fainéant dignity.

From Is He Popenjoy? by Trollope, Anthony