savoir-vivre

noun

Familiarity with the customs of polite society.

OriginFrench savoir-vivre →
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Meanings

nounsavoir-vivre (uncountable)
  1. uncountableFamiliarity with the customs of polite society.

    Like it or not, we are more invested in France, which has come to epitomise culture, good taste, style and savoir-vivre – even though that reverence is the product of ignorance as much as familiarity.

    2018 June 28, Phil Daoust, “Never mind the Brexiteurs: why it’s time to learn French”, in The Guardian

Origin

  1. Frenchsavoir-vivre
  2. Englishsavoir-vivre

Borrowed from French savoir-vivre, a nominalization of the verb phrase savoir vivre "to know how to live."

More words from French

Full word history & related roots →
Cite this entry
APA

savoir-vivre. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/savoir-vivre

MLA

“savoir-vivre.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/savoir-vivre. Accessed November 5, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “savoir-vivre,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/savoir-vivre.

Source: savoir-vivre on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.