boudoir

English

Etymology

Borrowed from French boudoir, from bouder (“to sulk”).

Pronunciation

• (General American) IPA^(key): /buˈdwɑɹ/
• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /ˈbuːdwɑː/

• Audio (Southern England):

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ɑː(ɹ)

Noun

boudoir (plural boudoirs)

1. A woman's private sitting room, dressing room, or bedroom.
   • 1834, L[etitia] E[lizabeth] L[andon], chapter XI, in Francesca Carrara. […], volume I, London: Richard Bentley, […], (successor to Henry Colburn), →OCLC, page 118:

     The Duchesse's boudoir was fitted up in a style of luxury utterly different from anything before familiar to the Carraras.

   • 1960, P[elham] G[renville] Wodehouse, chapter XII, in Jeeves in the Offing, London: Herbert Jenkins, →OCLC:

     I found her in her boudoir getting outside a dish of tea and a crumpet.

Usage notes

Strictly refers only to a woman’s room, but sometimes used informally or humorously to refer to the vaginal canal.

Coordinate terms

• cabinet, study (male equivalent)

Derived terms

• boudoir biscuit
• boudoir chair
• boudoir lamp
• boudoir piano
• smell like a tart's boudoir

 

Related terms

• boody

 

Translations

woman's private room — see bower

See also

• withdrawing room, drawing room

French

Etymology

From bouder +‎ -oir.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /bu.dwaʁ/

• Audio:

  (file)

• Rhymes: -waʁ

Noun

boudoir m (plural boudoirs)

1. boudoir
2. sponge, ladyfinger

Descendants

• → Bulgarian: будоар (budoar)
• → English: boudoir
• → German: Boudoir
• → Greek: μπουντουάρ (bountouár)
• → Hungarian: budoár
• → Macedonian: будоар (budoar)
• → Polish: buduar
• → Romanian: budoar
• → Russian: будуа́р (buduár)
  • → Georgian: ბუდუარი (buduari)
• → Serbo-Croatian: будоар
• → Swedish: budoar
• → Ukrainian: будуа́р (buduár)

Further reading

• “boudoir”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012.