- bete noire
- bete noire "insufferable person," 1844, from Fr. bête noire "personal aversion," as an adjective, "stupid, foolish;" lit. "the black beast."
Etymology dictionary. 2014.
bete noire
Look at other dictionaries:
bête noire — [ˌbet ˈnwa: US ˈnwa:r] n [singular] [Date: 1800 1900; : French; Origin: black beast ] sb s bête noire the person or thing that someone dislikes most … Dictionary of contemporary English
bête noire — ► NOUN (pl. bêtes noires pronunc. same) (one s bête noire) ▪ a person or thing that one particularly dislikes. ORIGIN French, black beast … English terms dictionary
Bete noire — B[^e]te noire [Fr., lit. black beast.] Something especially hated or dreaded; a bugbear. [1913 Webster] … The Collaborative International Dictionary of English
Bête noire — (franz., spr. bät nŭār , »schwarzes Tier«), Gegenstand des Abscheus oder starker Abneigung … Meyers Großes Konversations-Lexikon
Bête noire — ● Bête noire personne, chose pour laquelle il éprouve une antipathie irrésistible … Encyclopédie Universelle
bête noire — *abomination, bugbear, anathema … New Dictionary of Synonyms
bête noire — is always written with the final e. The plural is bêtes noires, with both s s silent … Modern English usage
bête noire — [n] trouble adversary, anathema, antagonist, bad news*, bane, curse, devil, enemy, pet hate, plague; concepts 532,674,675,690,728 … New thesaurus
bête noire — [bāt΄ nwär′; ] Fr [ bet nwȧr′] n. pl. bêtes noires [bāt΄nwärz′; ] Fr [ bet nwȧr′] [Fr, lit., black beast] a person or thing that is disliked or feared, and therefore avoided … English World dictionary
Bête noire — The term bête noire (IPAEng|ˌbeɪtˈnwɑr or [IPA|bɛt nwaʀ] ; French for dark beast ) is used to refer to an object or abstract idea that causes fear or has the potential to cause large harm. The phrase is used in several pop culture terms:* Bête… … Wikipedia
