Word origins

• colporteurA peddler of publications, especially of religious books
• combleA band along the top part of the shield, half the height of the chief.
• comfitureA confection, especially of preserved fruit.
• comme ci comme çaNeither good nor bad; so so; tolerable, passable, indifferent.
• comme il fautProper; in keeping with etiquette or social standards.
• comme moiLike me.
• commensurabilityThe quality of being commensurable or commensurate
• CommingesA former region of France.
• commissionaireOne entrusted with a (small) commission, such as an errand; especially, an attendant or subordinate employee in a public office, hotel, etc.
• communardA person who lives in a commune.
• CommunicationsspracheAn international auxiliary language created by Joseph Schipfer in 1836, chiefly based on French, with some influences from Latin, English and German.
• communiquéAn official report or statement, such as a government press release or the report of a conference.
• CompeauA surname from French.
• compenseTo compensate.
• CompiègneA commune in Oise department, Hauts-de-France, France.
• compissTo piss all over (something); to wet with urine.
• complotismConspiracy theories.
• complotistA conspiracy theorist.
• componyDivided into a line of squares of alternating tinctures.
• compte renduA report by an officer or agent.
• comtalPertaining to a count.
• concasséFood (fish, fruit, vegetables, etc) that has been coarsely chopped or cut into large pieces.
• concassedRoughly chopped or diced; (in particular, of a tomato) diced after the seeds/core and skin have been removed.
• concheSynonym of concher (“machine used to refine the flavour and texture of chocolate”).
• conclavistThe personal aide of a cardinal at a papal conclave.
• concomitanceoccurrence or existence together or in connection with one another, coexistence
• concomitateTo accompany; to be somehow connected with.
• concursionA sudden solidification.
• condescendenceThe act of condescending; voluntary descent from one's rank or dignity in intercourse with an inferior; courtesy toward inferiors, condescension.
• conferencierA person who organizes a conference, or is a leading member of one
• confessantOne who confesses to a priest.
• confiseurA French confectioner.
• confreriebrotherhood, association
• confrontéFace-to-face; facing each other; fornenst.
• congeSynonym of congee: to take leave, to bid farewell, in various senses; to bow, to curtsey, etc.
• congéSynonym of apophyge or cavetto, supports at the top or bottom of pillars, particularly rings or ferrils in the extremities of wooden pillars, added to provide support and prevent splintering, their imitation in stone, or a molding in the form of a quarter round.
• congé d'élireA licence from the Crown in England issued under the great seal to the dean and chapter of the cathedral church of a diocese, authorizing them to elect a bishop or archbishop upon the vacancy of any episcopal see in England.
• Congis-sur-ThérouanneA village in Seine-et-Marne department, France.
• conglobeTo collect (something) into a round mass; to conglobate.
• CongolianOf, from, or pertaining to the Congo River or associated ecosystems.
• congySynonym of congius, Roman units of liquid measure and mass.
• connoisseuseA female connoisseur.
• consigneA countersign or watchword.
• consolableAble or likely to be consoled.
• consomméa clear broth made from reduced meat or vegetable stock, served either hot as a soup or chilled as a jelly
• constatationThe process of verification.
• constateTo relay information in a statement and say whether it is true or false.
• contournéFacing sinister instead of dexter.
• contractantA contracting party; one that contracts.
• contra danceA type of folk dance style in which couples dance in two facing lines of indefinite length.
• contraposeTo place in contraposition.
• contrapositionThe statement of the form "if not Q then not P", given the statement "if P then Q".
• contravallationA fortification built around a sieged target by the besiegers.
• ContrazyA village in Ariège department, Occitania, France.
• contrecoupA bruising of the brain caused by a blow, appearing on the opposite side to that on which the blow was struck.
• contredanseA folk dance in which two lines of couples face each other.
• contre-jourSynonym of backlighting.
• convenableCapable of being convened or assembled.
• convenanceconventional propriety
• conventionnelA member of the French National Convention.
• conviveTo feast with others
• copistA copier; one who copies.
• CoppeeA surname from French.
• coprolaliaThe uncontrolled use of abusive, obscene or scatological language; especially such behaviour associated with Tourette syndrome.
• coq au vinA dish of chicken cooked with wine (usually red wine) along with accompaniments such as mushrooms, onions and garlic.
• coquecigrueA chimera.
• coquelicotA reddish-orange colour; poppy.
• coquelucheA type of hood historically worn by those infected with whooping cough, to keep a warm head.
• cor anglaisA double-reed woodwind instrument in the oboe family that is pitched in F, one-fifth lower than the oboe and is consequently approximately one-third longer than the oboe.
• corbeilleA decorative basket.
• CorbusianOf, pertaining to, or characteristic of the Swiss architect Le Corbusier.
• cordeauA detonating cord.
• cordeliereA decorative cord, especially that surrounding a blazon used to display a widow's coat of arms.
• cordelingThe pulling of a boat by people walking along the shore holding an attached rope.
• cordon bleuA skillful chef.
• cordonnetDoubled and twisted thread, made of coarse silk, and used for tassels, fringes, etc.
• cordon sanitaireA barrier (physical or administrative) to prevent the spread of disease.
• cornageA feudal tax levied on horned cattle.
• CornecA surname from French.
• cornemuseA French musical instrument very similar to bagpipes.
• corneuleOne of the corneas of a compound eye in certain invertebrates.
• cornichonA dill-pickled gherkin cucumber.
• cornierA surname from French.
• CornouailleA historical region of Brittany, France, settled by princes from Cornwall.
• corporeityThe quality or fact of having a physical or material body.
• corps-a-corpsThe action of two fencers coming into physical contact with one another with any portion of their bodies or hilts.
• corps d'arméeA corps.
• corps de gardeA body of soldiers stationed on guard.
• corps de logisThe principal mass of a building, excluding the wings.
• Corse-du-SudA department of Corsica, France.
• corseletArmor for the body, for example a breastplate and backpiece taken together.
• corsequeA pole weapon with a spike and two lateral blades on a shaft.
• corsetierA manufacturer of corsets.
• corsetiereA female corsetmaker, or a woman in a shop who fits corsets.
• CorseyA surname from French.
• corticineA material used for floor covering, made of ground cork and india rubber.
• corveeUnpaid labor required by a feudal lord.
• corymbA cluster of flowers with a flat or convex top.
• coryphéeThe conductor or leader of the chorus of a drama.
• cosmopoliteOne who is at home in every place; a citizen of the world; a cosmopolitan person.