vaurien

See also: Vaurien

English

Etymology

Borrowed from French vaurien; used by Isaac D'Israeli for the name of the eponymous character of his 1797 novel Vaurien: or Sketches of the Times.

Noun

vaurien (plural vauriens)

1. (archaic) A good-for-nothing; a scoundrel.
   • 1841, William Jesse, Notes of a Half-pay in Search of Health, Volume 1, James Madden & Co., page 62:

     Quarantine, a disagreeable thing at all times, was rendered perfectly disgusting by the manner in which the spoglia was conducted, the vermin, and the disobliging conduct of the director, who was a regular “vaurien.”

French

Etymology

From vaut (“is worth”), third person singular of valoir +‎ rien (“nothing”). Compare German Taugenichts or Dutch deugniet.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /vo.ʁjɛ̃/

• Audio

  (file)

Noun

vaurien m (plural vauriens, feminine vaurienne)

1. good-for-nothing, a person regarded as useless or worthless

   Cet esclave est un vaurien: même le fouet ne le rend pas productif.

   That slave is a good-for-nothing, even the whip doesn't make him productive.

Further reading

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