Word of the Day
for Sunday,
April 7, 2013
Demimonde \DEM-ee-mond; Fr. duh-mee-MAWND\, noun:
1. a group characterised by lack of success or status: the literary demimonde.
2. (especially during the last half of the 19th century) a class of women who have lost their standing in respectable society because of indiscreet behaviour or sexual promiscuity.
3. a demimondaine.
4. prostitutes or courtesans in general.
5. a group whose activities are ethically or legally questionable: a demimonde of investigative journalists writing for the sensationalist tabloids.
2. (especially during the last half of the 19th century) a class of women who have lost their standing in respectable society because of indiscreet behaviour or sexual promiscuity.
3. a demimondaine.
4. prostitutes or courtesans in general.
5. a group whose activities are ethically or legally questionable: a demimonde of investigative journalists writing for the sensationalist tabloids.
It had not always been
that way; it had begun as something more like a network of friends, or the part
of the underground that lived in the demimonde.
-- Kim Stanley Robinson, Blue Mars, 2003
-- Kim Stanley Robinson, Blue Mars, 2003
Although it had not
been important upon her ascension to the apex of the demimonde,
once there, impending poverty created a stench of failure.
-- Linda Berdoll, Darcy and Elizabeth, 2006
-- Linda Berdoll, Darcy and Elizabeth, 2006
Demimode comes to English from the French demi- + monde
literally meaning "half world." The phrase was coined and popularised
by Alexander Dumas, fils.
Thanks to: www.dictionary.com
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