bonbonne

B3O1N1B3O1N1N1E1

noun

A demijohn or carboy.

OriginFrench bonbonne f ← Occitan boumbouno m ← Latin bombus →
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Meanings

nounbonbonne (plural bonbonnes)

plural bonbonnes · alternative bombonne

  1. A demijohn or carboy.
  2. A gas cylinder.

Origin

  1. Latinbombus
  2. Occitanboumbouno m
  3. Frenchbonbonne f
  4. Englishbonbonne

Borrowed from French bonbonne f, from Occitan boumbouno m [from boumbo + -ouno, ultimately from Latin bombus and -ōnem], made feminine in French under the influence of French bonne (unrelated), and with change of bomb- to bonb- under the influence of French bonbon (also unrelated). Although less common in French, the spelling bombonne more accurately reflects the Latin bomb- root.

More words from French, Occitan, Latin

Full word history & related roots →
Cite this entry
APA

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

MLA

“bonbonne.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/bonbonne. Accessed November 4, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “bonbonne,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/bonbonne.

Source: bonbonne on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.