complaisant

English

Etymology

From French complaisant (“willing to please”), from complaire, from Latin complacēre, present active infinitive of complaceō (“please well”), from com- (“with”) + placeō (“please”).

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /kəmˈpleɪsənt/
• (US) IPA^(key): /kəmˈpleɪsənt/, /kəmˈpleɪzənt/
• Homophone: complacent

Adjective

complaisant (comparative more complaisant, superlative most complaisant)

1. Compliant.
2. Willing to do what pleases others; obliging; agreeable.

   Synonym: amenable

   Coordinate term: (stronger and more negative) obsequious

3. (archaic) Polite; showing respect.
   • 1726 October 28, [Jonathan Swift], “The Country Described. […]”, in Travels into Several Remote Nations of the World. […] [Gulliver’s Travels], volume I, London: […] Benj[amin] Motte, […], →OCLC, part II (A Voyage to Brobdingnag), pages 222–223:

     The People who had often heard of me, were very curious to croud about the Sedan, and the Girl was complaiſant enough to make the Bearers ſtop, and to take me in her Hand that I might be conveniently ſeen.

Usage notes

• Complaisant should not be confused with its homophone, complacent.

Derived terms

• complaisantly

Related terms

• complaisance

Translations

compliant

• Bulgarian: отстъпчив (bg) (otstǎpčiv)
• Dutch: voldoend (nl) (aan (nl)), passend (nl)
• Esperanto: cedema
• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: føyelig (no)

• Swedish: foglig (sv)

willing to do what pleases others

• Bulgarian: внимателен (bg) (vnimatelen), любезен (bg) (ljubezen)
• Dutch: tegemoetkomend (nl), welwillend (nl), willig (nl)
• Esperanto: komplezema
• French: complaisant (fr)
• German: gefällig (de), entgegenkommend (de), wohlwollend (de)
• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: imøtekommende, velvillig (no), villig

• Spanish: complaciente (es)
• Swedish: tillmötesgående (sv)

polite

• Bulgarian: вежлив (bg) (vežliv)
• Dutch: tegemoetkomend (nl), vriendelijk (nl), respectvol (nl)
• Esperanto: bonmaniera, ĝentila (eo)
• Swedish: artig (sv)

French

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /kɔ̃.plɛ.zɑ̃/, /kɔ̃.ple.zɑ̃/

• Audio

  (file)

Participle

complaisant

1. present participle of complaire

Adjective

complaisant (feminine complaisante, masculine plural complaisants, feminine plural complaisantes)

1. complaisant, obliging, eager to please

Derived terms

• mari complaisant

Further reading

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