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debonair
5 dictionary results for: Debonair
Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1) - Cite This Source - Share This
deb·o·nair 
[deb-uh-nair] Pronunciation Key
—Related forms
[deb-uh-nair] Pronunciation Key –adjective
| 1. | courteous, gracious, and having a sophisticated charm: a debonair gentleman. |
| 2. | jaunty; carefree; sprightly. |
Also, deb·o·naire, deb·on·naire.
[Origin: 1175–1225; ME debone(i)re < AF; OF debonaire, orig. phrase de bon aire of good lineage]
] —Related forms
deb·o·nair·ly, adverb
deb·o·nair·ness, noun
—Synonyms 1. urbane, suave, elegant, polished.
Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1)
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.
American Heritage Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
| deb·o·nair also deb·o·naire
(děb'ə-nâr') Pronunciation Key
adj.
[Middle English debonaire, gracious, kindly, from Old French, from de bon aire, of good lineage or disposition : de, of (from Latin dē; see de-) + bon, bonne, good (from Latin bonus; see deu-2 in Indo-European roots) + aire, nest, family; see aerie.] deb'o·nair'ly adv., deb'o·nair'ness n. |
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The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Online Etymology Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
debonair
debonair
c.1225, from O.Fr., from de bon' aire "of good race," originally used of hawks, hence, "thoroughbred" (opposite of Fr. demalaire). Used in M.E. to mean "docile, courteous," it became obsolete and was revived with an altered sense of "pleasant, affable" (1685).
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
WordNet - Cite This Source - Share This
| debonair | |
adjective | |
| 1. | having a sophisticated charm; "a debonair gentleman" |
| 2. | having a cheerful, lively, and self-confident air; "looking chipper, like a man...diverted by his own wit"- Frances G. Patton; "life that is gay, brisk, and debonair"- H.M.Reynolds; "walked with a jaunty step"; "a jaunty optimist" [syn: chipper] |
WordNet® 3.0, © 2006 by Princeton University.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
Debonair
Deb`o*nair"\, a. [OE. debonere, OF. de bon aire, debonaire, of good descent or lineage, excellent, debonair, F. d['e]bonnaire debonair; de of (L. de) + bon good (L. bonus) + aire. See Air, and Bounty, and cf. Bonair.] Characterized by courteousness, affability, or gentleness; of good appearance and manners; graceful; complaisant. Was never prince so meek and debonair. --Spenser.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
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