rendezvous
Americannoun
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an agreement between two or more persons to meet at a certain time and place.
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the meeting itself.
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a place designated for a meeting or assembling, especially of troops or ships.
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a meeting of two or more spacecraft in outer space.
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a favorite or popular gathering place.
verb (used with or without object)
noun
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a meeting or appointment to meet at a specified time and place
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a place where people meet
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an arranged meeting of two spacecraft
verb
Other Word Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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rendezvoussimple
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have rendezvousedperfect
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has rendezvousedperfect
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am rendezvousingprogressive
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are rendezvousingprogressive
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is rendezvousingprogressive
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have been rendezvousingperfect progressive
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has been rendezvousingperfect progressive
Past
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rendezvousedsimple
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had rendezvousedperfect
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was rendezvousingprogressive
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were rendezvousingprogressive
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had been rendezvousingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of rendezvous
1585–95; < Middle French, noun use of rendez-vous (imperative) present or betake yourselves; see render 1
Explanation
Rendezvous is a very French way to say "meeting" or "date." So go ahead and call your next dentist appointment or lunch date with friends a rendezvous. In the 1590s, rendezvous meant “a place for assembling of troops.” And you'll still hear military tacticians talking about "rendezvous points" today. But more often we use rendezvous to describe an assembling of friends, an appointment, or a date with your secret lover. If you're feeling extra Frenchy, you can use rendezvous as a verb, as in "Let's rendezvous next Saturday at the mall."
Vocabulary lists containing rendezvous
The Silent Treatment: Words Plagued by Silent Letters
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Hamilton
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"Of Plymouth Plantation," Vocabulary from the historical account
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
During the Artemis III demonstration mission, crews in space and teams on Earth will practice rendezvous and docking operations between the Orion spacecraft and commercially developed lunar landers.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 23, 2026
The third phase of Artemis will involve testing the Orion spacecraft and conducting rendezvous and docking tests with lunar landers.
From Barron's ● Jun. 10, 2026
Zambada has said that he agreed to rendezvous with Guzmán outside Culiacán, the Sinaloa state capital, because he had been told that Rocha Moya would be there.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 30, 2026
Artemis III will launch a crew into low Earth orbit and evaluate the rendezvous and docking capabilities between the agency’s Orion spacecraft and SpaceX or Blue Origin’s landers—or both of those vehicles.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 15, 2026
The plan was for Walter, Kathrada, and Duma Nokwe to meet me at a secret rendezvous in Soweto and bring me my credentials for the trip.
From "Long Walk to Freedom" by Nelson Mandela
So the detectives drove back to the Boise airport, landed in Los Angeles at 2 a.m., rendezvoused with co-workers at 4 a.m. and headed to meet Morrison at a high-security storage center in Las Vegas.
From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 13, 2024
Still, the hotel maintained its sentimental pull as the place where your parents honeymooned; where you spent your first night in the big city; where you rendezvoused with friends.
From Seattle Times ● Jan. 1, 2024
The four of us have rendezvoused here, about three hours south of Salt Lake City, for a three-day canyoneering trip.
From Washington Post ● Sep. 16, 2022
Rusesabagina and Niyomwungere rendezvoused as planned at the Ibis Styles hotel and then went to the airport.
From New York Times ● Mar. 2, 2021
Climbing to twenty thousand feet, he rendezvoused with nine other Skyhawks headed for North Vietnam.
From "Most Dangerous: Daniel Ellsberg and the Secret History of the Vietnam War" by Steve Sheinkin
The crew will then spend a little less than a full day in orbit before rendezvousing with the International Space Station.
From The Verge ● Oct. 29, 2021
We had planned to meet at the Nice airport, but after a flight delay, I ended up rendezvousing with them in Antibes.
From Washington Post ● Apr. 12, 2018
He stated that he was arrested as he was rendezvousing with a 35-year-old former North Korean solider, who was giving him a USB stick and camera containing military secrets.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 29, 2016
Bowie reportedly wrote this song after seeing a couple rendezvousing under the Berlin Wall and imagining their story.
From Time ● Jan. 11, 2016
Standing ready, or hourly marching in, and rendezvousing; now about 28,000 strong, horse and foot.
From History of Friedrich II of Prussia — Volume 12 by Carlyle, Thomas
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
