nègre

See also: negre, négre, Negre, and Nègre

French

Etymology

From Middle French negre, from Spanish or Portuguese negro, itself from Latin niger. Doublet of noir.

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /nɛɡʁ/
  • (Quebec) IPA(key): /naɛ̯ɡʁ/
  • (file)

Noun

nègre m (plural nègres, feminine négresse)

  1. (offensive or dated) negro
    Synonyms: négro, noir
  2. (now sometimes offensive) ghostwriter
    un nègre littéraire
  3. (informal, derogatory, Louisiana, Cajun) friend, buddy
  4. (informal, Louisiana, Cajun) honey, baby, precious (term of endearment)

Usage notes

  • In Cajun French, nègre has no racial connotation. It is a term of endearment for a young boy.
  • The preferred form for ghostwriter is prête-plume, as the term nègre has pejorative connotations.

Derived terms

Descendants

  • German: Neger (Negerin)
  • Swedish: neger

Adjective

nègre (plural nègres)

  1. (relational) of the Blacks of Africa or of African arts
  2. black (color)

Usage notes

  • This term is not considered pejorative as an adjective, but due to the associations of the noun, is often replaced with africain.

Derived terms

  • alouette nègre
  • Alouette nègre (black lark), Melanocorypha yeltoniensis (Alouette can be spelled with a “capital A” to emphasize the French name of the species) (cf. German: Mohrenlerche and Mohr)

See also

  • mélanoderme

Further reading

Anagrams

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