misère

British  

/ mɪˈzɛə /

noun

1. a call in solo whist and other card games declaring a hand that will win no tricks

2. a hand that will win no tricks

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Etymology

Origin of misère

C19: from French: misery

Example Sentences

On “Calvaire,” Chicha sings, “T’es ma misère, c’est le monde a l’envers, t’es mon enfer, ’vec tes commentaires,” which translates to “You’re my misery, my world inverted, you’re my hell with your observations.”

From Washington Post

It is a universe of dilapidated stairwells, cramped apartments and barren concrete plazas, and all are in the misère, as the French would say.

From New York Times

After every misère ouverte we have a round of nap.

From Literature

Morin: In French we say, “la misere est plus douce au soleil” — hardship is milder under the sun.

From Los Angeles Times

In the book’s most interesting chapter, Nochlin assesses the lesser-known naturalistic painter Fernand Pelez, whose bewildering “Grimaces and Misery: The Saltimbanques” depicts tired, underfed children performing in a Paris sideshow, a spectacle of misère that stands in for the impoverished city.

From New York Times