bel esprit

UK/bɛlɛˈspɹi/

noun

A very witty or clever person.

OriginFrench bel esprit →
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Meanings

nounbel esprit (plural beaux esprits)

plural beaux esprits

  1. A very witty or clever person.

    a man of letters and a bel esprit

    1824, Geoffrey Crayon [pseudonym; Washington Irving], Tales of a Traveller, (please specify |part=1 to 4), Philadelphia, Pa.: H[enry] C[harles] Carey & I[saac] Lea, […], →OCLC

Origin

  1. Frenchbel esprit
  2. Englishbel esprit

Borrowed from French bel esprit.

More words from French

Full word history & related roots →
Cite this entry
APA

bel esprit. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/bel%20esprit

MLA

“bel esprit.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/bel%20esprit. Accessed November 4, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “bel esprit,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/bel%20esprit.

Source: bel esprit on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.