fainéant

[ fey-nee-uh nt; French fe-ney-ahn ]
/ ˈfeɪ ni ənt; French fɛ neɪˈɑ̃ /
SEE SYNONYMS FOR fainéant ON THESAURUS.COM

adjective

Also fai·ne·ant [fey-nee-uh nt] /ˈfeɪ ni ənt/. idle; indolent.

noun, plural fai·né·ants [fey-nee-uh nts; French fe-ney-ahn] /ˈfeɪ ni ənts; French fɛ neɪˈɑ̃/.

an idler.

Origin of fainéant

1610–20; < French, earlier fait-nient, literally, he does nothing, pseudo-etymological alteration of Old French faignant idler, noun use of present participle of se faindre to shirk. See feign, faint

OTHER WORDS FROM fainéant

fai·ne·ance [fey-nee-uh ns] /ˈfeɪ ni əns/, noun

Words nearby fainéant

faint, faintheart, fainthearted, faints, fainty, fainéant, fair, fair and square, fair ball, fair catch, fair copy

Words related to faineance

sloth, lethargy, negligence, apathy, weariness, inertia, inertness, slackness, dormancy, stolidity, tardiness, heaviness, idleness, dullness, remissness, listlessness, slothfulness, inactivity, laxness, slowness

British Dictionary definitions for faineance

fainéant
/ (ˈfeɪnɪənt, French fɛneɑ̃) /

noun

a lazy person; idler

adjective

indolent

Derived forms of fainéant

faineance or faineancy, noun

Word Origin for fainéant

C17: from French, modification of earlier fait-nient (he) does nothing, by folk etymology from Old French faignant shirker, from faindre to be lazy