restreint

French

Etymology

Borrowed or adapted from Latin restrictus, modeled after étreint.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ʁɛs.tʁɛ̃/

• Audio (France (Vosges)):

  (file)

Participle

restreint (feminine restreinte, masculine plural restreints, feminine plural restreintes)

1. past participle of restreindre

Adjective

restreint (feminine restreinte, masculine plural restreints, feminine plural restreintes)

1. restricted.
2. narrow.
3. sombre, without ostentation.
   • 1914, André Gide, Les Caves du Vatican, Bayard Presse, published 1989, page 58:

     Son pardessus, son plastron, son chapeau cronstadt même, présentaient je ne sais quoi de décent, de restreint et de distingué…

     His overcoat, his plastron, even his cronstadt hat, presented something decent, restrained, & distinguished...

Derived terms

• comité restreint
• relativité restreinte
• suffrage restreint

Further reading

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