bonhomie
noun
Jean Stafford
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English speakers borrowed bonhomie from French, where the word was created from bonhomme, which means "good-natured man" and is itself a composite of two other French words: bon, meaning "good," and homme, meaning "man." That French compound traces to two Latin terms, bonus (meaning "good") and homo (meaning either "man" or "human being"). English speakers have warmly embraced bonhomie and its meaning, but we have also anglicized the pronunciation in a way that may make native French speakers cringe. (We hope they will be good-natured about it!)
Examples of bonhomie in a Sentence
Sergey Radchenko, NPR, 19 June 2024
This bonhomie, however, did not produce any real change in Beijing’s foreign policy.
—Praveen Donthi, Foreign Affairs, 4 June 2024
The oldest kid, Fred Jr. (Charlie Carrick), already an alcoholic but also possessing a natural bonhomie Donald lacks, bears the brunt of dad’s ire.
—Bilge Ebiri, Vulture, 21 May 2024
Lamont earned his bonhomie through prudence and upholding the 2017 budget restraints a bipartisan legislature enacted.
—Kevin Rennie, Hartford Courant, 10 Feb. 2024
See all Example Sentences for bonhomie 
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'bonhomie.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
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Cite this Entry
“Bonhomie.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/bonhomie. Accessed 2 Jul. 2024.
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