Meanings
nounbon-vivant (plural bon-vivants or bons-vivants)
plural bon-vivants · plural bons-vivants
- alternativeAlternative form of bon vivant.
Not that I would not, if I could, [...] be a wit, a bon-vivant, and a lady-killer, as well as a philosopher [...] But the thing is simply impossible. The millionaire's work would run counter to the saint's; the bon-vivant and the philanthropist would trip each other up...
1890, William James, “The Consicousness of Self”, in The Principles of Psychology, page 310
Cite this entry
APA
bon-vivant. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/bon-vivant
MLA
“bon-vivant.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/bon-vivant. Accessed November 4, 2026.
Chicago
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “bon-vivant,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/bon-vivant.
Source: bon-vivant on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.