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contretemps

 [kon-truh-tahn; Fr. kawntruh-tahn]   Example Sentences Origin

con·tre·temps

   [kon-truh-tahn; Fr. kawntruh-tahn]
noun, plural -temps  [-tahnz; Fr. -tahn] .
an inopportune occurrence; an embarrassing mischance: He caused a minor contretemps by knocking over his drink.
Origin:
1675–85; < French, equivalent to contre- counter- + temps time (< Latin tempus); perhaps alteration (by folk etymology) of Middle French contrestant, present participle of contrester to oppose; see contrast
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Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2012.
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Contretemps is always a great word to know.
So is ort. Does it mean:
a chattering or flighty, light-headed person.
a scrap or morsel of food left at a meal.
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Example Sentences
  • One of her lingering challenges will be the contretemps over the birds.
  • The rules for investor-broker contretemps apply as well to employees of the brokerage industry.
  • Over the years large hunks of its blowzy decoration have been removed, leaving it more curiosity than contretemps.
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Collins
World English Dictionary
contretemps (ˈkɒntrəˌtɑːn, French kɔ̃trətɑ̃)
 
—n , pl -temps
1.  an awkward or difficult situation or mishap
2.  fencing a feint made with the purpose of producing a counterthrust from one's opponent
3.  a small disagreement that is rather embarrassing
 
[C17: from French, from contre against + temps time, from Latin tempus]

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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Etymonline
Word Origin & History

contretemps
1684, "a blunder in fencing," from Fr. contre-temps "motion out of time, unfortunate accident, bad times." As a ballet term, from 1706; as "an unfortunate accident," 1802; as "a dispute," from 1961.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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