enceinte
See also: enceinté
English
Adjective
enceinte (not comparable)
- Pregnant.
- 1909, James Anthony Froude et al., The Reign of Henry the Eighth, vol. I:
- And the time was pressing, for the new queen was enceinte, and further concealment was not to be thought of.
- 1909, James Anthony Froude et al., The Reign of Henry the Eighth, vol. I:
Synonyms
- See also Thesaurus:pregnant
Noun
enceinte (plural enceintes)
- An enclosure.
- 1982, Lawrence Durrell, Constance, Faber & Faber 2004 (Avignon Quintet), p. 824:
- And so across the bridge and into the enceinte of the massive walls, threading their way towards the quarter where the morgue lay.
- 1982, Lawrence Durrell, Constance, Faber & Faber 2004 (Avignon Quintet), p. 824:
- The line of works forming the main enclosure of a fortress.
- The area or town enclosed by a line of fortification.
- S. W. Williams
- The suburbs are not unfrequently larger than their enceinte.
- S. W. Williams
French
Etymology
From Old French enceinte, from Latin incincta, feminine past participle of incingō. Compare Italian incinta, Spanish and Catalan encinta.
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /ɑ̃.sɛ̃t/
audio (file)
Usage notes
The masculine form enceint is occasionally used for species with male pregnancy, such as seahorses, as well as in metaphorical senses.
Further reading
- “enceinte” in le Trésor de la langue française informatisé (The Digitized Treasury of the French Language).
Old French
Descendants
- French: enceinte
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