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pied-à-terre

[pee-ey-duh-tair, -dah-, pyey-]
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noun, plural pieds-à-terre [pee-ey-duh-tair, -dah-, pyey-] /piˌeɪ dəˈtɛər, -dɑ-, ˌpyeɪ-/,
  1. a residence, as an apartment, for part-time or temporary use.
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Origin of pied-à-terre

1820–30; < French: literally, foot on ground
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for pied-a-terre

Historical Examples

  • Indeed, Dr. Lyschinski's was hardly more than a pied-a-terre for him: he never stayed long, and generally came unexpectedly.

    Frederick Chopin as a Man and Musician

    Frederick Niecks

  • Blakeney had more than one pied-a-terre in Paris, and never stayed longer than two or three days in any of these.

    El Dorado

    Baroness Orczy

British Dictionary definitions for pied-a-terre

pied-à-terre

noun plural pieds-à-terre (ˌpjeɪtɑːˈtɛə)
  1. a flat, house, or other lodging for secondary or occasional use
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Word Origin

French, literally: foot on (the) ground
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