Definition of: "beau monde" with explanation and origin
Definition of: beau monde with explanation and origin? Meaning of beau monde with examples in English idiom dictionary.
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Definition of: "beau monde" with explanation and origin
beau monde
beau monde
Meaning
- a fashionable society.
- a rich society.
- a class of people who are particularly wealthy and glamorous.
Example Sentences
- He had no interest in the glittering beau monde that he belonged to before his marriage.
- The beau monde has always been admired by the general public.
- A little beau monde seems to have rapidly developed over the course of the year right here in this city.
- Did you see that there was a seasoning named after Beau Monde? I’ve got to get my hands on it.
- When she grows up, she’s going to be an icon in the beau monde.
Origin
Though there is no official record of who first used the word or how it became popular, there is still an etymology for the term. Beau monde was first recorded as a term in the early 1700s (possibly between 1705 and 1710) in France. When translated into English, the term literally means “fine world”. Beau is an original French term meaning “beautiful”, which is derived from the Old French term, bel (meaning “beautiful” or “handsome”). The word “bel” is derived from the Latin term “bellus,” which means “fine” or “handsome.” Monde is also a French word that simply means “world”, and it originally derives from the Latin term mundus, which means “world” or “universe”.
The Origins of beau monde
Fashion, RichEnglish
Related Dictionary
- English Definition & Meaning Dictionary
- English Idioms and phrases Dictionary
- Dictionnaire Français
- Dictionnaire d'expressions idiomatiques et de phrases en français
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English Idioms and phrases
An idiom is a common word or phrase with a figurative, non-literal meaning that is understood culturally and differs from what its composite words' denotations would suggest; i.e. the words together have a meaning that is different from the dictionary definitions of the individual words (although some idioms do retain their literal meanings – see the example "kick the bucket" below). By another definition, an idiom is a speech form or an expression of a given language that is peculiar to itself grammatically or cannot be understood from the individual meanings of its elements.[3] For example, an English speaker would understand the phrase "kick the bucket" to mean "to die" – and also to actually kick a bucket. Furthermore, they would understand when each meaning is being used in context.
To evoke the desired effect in the listener, idioms require a precise replication of the phrase: not even articles can be used interchangeably (e.g. "kick a bucket" only retains the literal meaning of the phrase but not the idiomatic meaning).
Idioms should not be confused with other figures of speech such as metaphors, which evoke an image by use of implicit comparisons (e.g., "the man of steel"); similes, which evoke an image by use of explicit comparisons (e.g., "faster than a speeding bullet"); or hyperbole, which exaggerates an image beyond truthfulness (e.g., "more powerful than a locomotive"). Idioms are also not to be confused with proverbs, which are simple sayings that express a truth based on common sense or practical experience.
