ingénieux

French

Etymology

From Middle French [Term?], a semi-learned term based on Latin ingeniōsus (“endowed with good natural capacity, gifted with genius”), from ingenium (“innate or natural quality, natural capacity, genius”), from in (“in”) + gignere (“to produce”), Old Latin genere. Old French [Term?] had engignos (1160) and engenious (early 13c.), also from Latin.

Pronunciation

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Adjective

ingénieux (feminine ingénieuse, masculine plural ingénieux, feminine plural ingénieuses)

1. ingenious

Derived terms

• ingénieusement
• ingéniosité

Further reading

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