gamine

[gam-een, -in, ga-meen]

See more synonyms for gamine on Thesaurus.com

noun

a neglected girl who is left to run about the streets.
a diminutive or very slender girl, especially one who is pert, impudent, or playfully mischievous.

adjective

of or like a gamine: a gamine personality; clothes for the gamine figure.

Origin of gamine

1895–1900; < French; feminine of gamin

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

Related Words for gamine

romp, meg, gamine, spitfire, hoyden, hoiden

Examples from the Web for gamine

Contemporary Examples of gamine

She pointed to Maksymenko, whose delicate, gamine features make her seem especially frail.
Ukrainian Women Kidnapped by Russians in Crimea Tell Their Tale
Anna Nemtsova
March 24, 2014
They are both posh, pretty, gamine English girls blessed with serious eyebrows and a taste for the high life.
Cressida Bonas vs. Cara Delevingne: A Differentiation Guide to Two Celebrity English Roses
Tom Sykes
June 26, 2013
At Givenchy, designer Riccardo Tisci has settled into a house once defined by the gamine aesthetic of Audrey Hepburn.
Paris Fall Fashion Week 2012: A Finale at Yves Saint Laurent
Robin Givhan
March 7, 2012

Historical Examples of gamine

He had not noticed it himself, but seemed to have eyes for nobody but Sidonie, a gamine.
Fromont and Risler, Complete
Alphonse Daudet

British Dictionary definitions for gamine

gamine

noun

1. a slim and boyish girl or young woman; an elfish tomboy
2. (as modifier)a gamine style of haircut

Word Origin for gamine

from French

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 gamine

"small, slim, pert young girl," 1899, from French gamine, fem. of gamin.