Dictionary

femme incomprise en · NOUN

Pronunciation

• /fam ɛ̃.kɔ̃.pʁiz/ Gallicism
• /fam aŋkɒmˈpɹiːz/ (UK)

Etymology

Borrowed from French femme incomprise (literally “misunderstood woman”).

Meanings

1. A misunderstood or unappreciated woman.
   • Strong laughed. “Oh, Miss Amory is a muse—Miss Amory is a mystery—Miss Amory is a femme incomprise. 1848 November – 1850 December, William Makepeace Thackeray, chapter XXIII, in The History of Pendennis. […], volume (please specify |volume=I or II), London: Bradbury and Evans, […], published 1849–1850, →OCLC:
   • He posed as the horror of horrors—a misunderstood man. Heaven knows the femme incomprise is sad enough and bad enough—but the other thing! [1889 January], Rudyard Kipling, “A Second-rate Woman”, in Under the Deodars (A. H. Wheeler & Co.’s Indian Railway Library; no. 4), Allahabad, Uttar Pradesh: A[rthur] H[enry] Wheeler & Co.; London: Sampson Low, Marston, Searle, & Rivington, […], →OCLC, page 63:
   • “That two-anna basket-hanger governed India, I swear I’d become a naturalised Muscovite tomorrow. I’m a femme incomprise. This thing’s broken my heart.“ 1898 August, Rudyard Kipling, “Slaves of the Lamp II”, in Stalky & Co., London: Macmillan & Co., published 1899, →OCLC, page 6:

Forms