bienveillant

French

Etymology

From bien (“well”) +‎ veuillant (archaic present participle of vouloir; unrelated to veiller). Calque of Latin benevolēns.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /bjɛ̃.vɛ.jɑ̃/ ~ /bjɛ̃.ve.jɑ̃/

• Audio:

  (file)

Adjective

bienveillant (feminine bienveillante, masculine plural bienveillants, feminine plural bienveillantes)

1. benevolent

   Antonym: malveillant

Related terms

• bénévole
• bénévolence
• bienveillance
• bienveillamment

Further reading

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

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Middle French

Alternative forms

• bienveuillant
• bienvoeillant
• bienvueillant

Etymology

Old French bienvoulant.

Adjective

bienveillant m (feminine singular bienveillante, masculine plural bienveillans, feminine plural bienveillantes)

1. friendly; friends (attributively)

Noun

bienveillant m (plural bienveillans)

1. friend

Descendants

• French: bienveillant

References

• bienveillant on Dictionnaire du Moyen Français (1330–1500) (in French)