fléau

French

Etymology

From Old French flaiel, flael, flayau, inherited from Latin flagellum.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /fle.o/

• audio:

  (file)

Noun

fléau m (plural fléaux)

1. A flail, either tool or weapon.
2. A scourge; a curse, a calamity or a plague.
3. (mechanics) The beam of a mechanical balance.

Related terms

• flageller

Further reading

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