ENNUI (on-WEE)
Boredom
Common
clues: Boredom;
Lassitude; Ho-hum feeling; Languor; Tedium; Weariness; The blahs;
Listlessness
Crossword
puzzle frequency:
2 times a year
Frequency
in English language:
54693 / 86800
News:
Wii
and Ennui: Media Use and Child Mental Health
Video:
Ennui
Sufferers Foundation Ad
Art:
NYT
Crossword Drawing
Ennui
is a feeling of weariness and dissatisfaction.
The
phrase mihi in odi est, meaning “I hate or dislike,”
gave rise to the Vulgar Latin verb inodire, “to make
odious,” the source of the Old French verb ennuyer or
anoier, “to annoy, bore.” This was borrowed into
English by around 1275 as anoien, our annoy. From the Old French
verb a noun meaning “worry, boredom” was derived,
which became ennui in modern French. This noun, with the sense
“boredom,” was borrowed into English in the 18th
century, perhaps filling a need in polite, upper class society.
Ennui
is different from boredom in that ennui describes weariness or
annoyance over a long period of time; boredom is relieved easily,
while ennui is continual.
This
article is licensed under the GNU
Free Documentation License.
It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Ennui".
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