ENNUI
What does "ENNUI" mean?
A feeling of listless weariness and dissatisfaction arising from boredom or lack of purpose.
Meanings
- Deep boredom and world-weariness born of having nothing that excites or satisfies. By August the whole household had sunk into a quiet ennui. formal
Did you know?
- The lofty French 'ennui' and the everyday 'annoy' are the same word in two coats - both come from Latin 'inodiare', to make hateful, rooted in the phrase 'in odio', in hatred.
Word origin
Borrowed directly from French 'ennui' (boredom, weariness), from Old French 'enui', from the verb 'enuier' (to annoy, weary), from Late Latin 'inodiare' (to make hateful), from the phrase 'in odio' (in hatred) - the same root as English 'annoy'.
Remember it
ENNUI sounds like 'on-WE' - say it with a sigh and you're already halfway into the mood.
A little poem
The clock will not move-
and nothing on every shelf
is worth standing for.
haiku
Wordplay
- Why does ennui never make plans? Because it discovered that 'annoy' is its own twin, and even getting bored felt like too much effort.
What it teaches
Ennui is not the absence of things to do but the absence of anything worth doing them for.
Quick facts
What does ENNUI mean?
A feeling of listless weariness and dissatisfaction arising from boredom or lack of purpose.
Is ENNUI a valid word?
Yes — ENNUI is one of the answer words in Wordul, the daily word game.
How many letters is ENNUI?
ENNUI has 5 letters and 2 syllables.
Where does ENNUI come from?
Borrowed directly from French 'ennui' (boredom, weariness), from Old French 'enui', from the verb 'enuier' (to annoy, weary), from Late Latin 'inodiare' (to make hateful), from the phrase 'in odio' (in hatred) - the same root as English 'annoy'.
What can ENNUI teach us?
Ennui is not the absence of things to do but the absence of anything worth doing them for.
How players do
Be the first to solve it.