French

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Etymology

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From fourbir.

Pronunciation

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  • IPA(key): /fuʁb/
  • Audio:(file)

Noun

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fourbe f (plural fourbes)

  1. (literary) guile, deception
    Synonyms: fourberie, perfidie

Noun

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fourbe m or f by sense (plural fourbes)

  1. double-dealer, swindler
    Synonym: salaud
    • 1832, Honoré de Balzac, chapter 2, in Ellen Marriage, transl., La Femme de trente ans:
      — Moi, s’écria-t-elle, j’irais livrer au premier fourbe qui saura jouer la comédie d’une passion les dernières, les plus précieuses richesses de mon cœur, et corrompre ma vie pour un moment de douteux plaisir ?
      "Do you think," she cried, "that I shall bestow the last, the most precious treasures of my heart upon the first base impostor who can play the comedy of passion?

Adjective

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fourbe (plural fourbes)

  1. deceitful, two-faced, treacherous
    Synonym: perfide
    Un esprit, un caractère, une âme fourbe.(please add an English translation of this usage example)

Further reading

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