contenance

See also: Contenance

French

Etymology

Inherited from Old French countenance; from the present participle of contenir, with the suffix -ance, cf. also Late Latin continentia.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /kɔ̃t.nɑ̃s/

• Audio:

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ɑ̃s

Noun

contenance f (plural contenances)

1. capacity (amount that can be held)
2. composure

Derived terms

• faire bonne contenance

Related terms

• contenant

Descendants

• → German: Contenance

Further reading

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