minaudière

American  

[mee-noh-dyair, mee-noh-dyer] / ˌmi noʊˈdyɛər, mi noʊˈdyɛr /

Or minaudiere

noun

PLURAL

minaudieres

1. a small, sometimes jeweled case for a woman's cosmetics or other personal objects, often carried as a handbag.

---

Etymology

Origin of minaudière

First recorded in 1935–40 (earlier in sense “coquette”); from French minaudière originally, “coquette, person with affected manners,” noun use of feminine of minaudier “affected,” equivalent to minaud(er) “to have an affected manner” (verbal derivative, with -aud adjective suffix, of mine “facial expression,” probably from Breton min “muzzle”) + -ier; ribald, -ier ²

Example Sentences

Per Vogue, there’s Hubert de Givenchy’s 1953 “salt white” dress embroidered with sliced tomatoes, Cynthia Rowley’s 1993 tomato-printed rayon dress and Judith Leiber’s tomato rhinestone minaudière circa 1994.

From Salon

A small clutch evening bag or minaudiere is being sold with two 10-cent coins, eight Philip Morris cigarettes and a used Revlon lipstick in the shade "Bachelor's Carnation," a vibrant red hue.

From Reuters

There are also accessories, consisting of white leather sneakers, a black folio for men and an envelope clutch and minaudière for women.

From The Wall Street Journal

The price tag for the gold, rose-shaped minaudière: $4,995.

From The Wall Street Journal

Lhuillier also showed more of her own shoes, and for the first time, minaudiere bags.

From Los Angeles Times