plumitif

French

Etymology

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ply.mi.tif/

• Audio

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Noun

plumitif m (plural plumitifs)

1. (law) docket
2. (derogatory) penpusher, scribbler
   • 1992, Amélie Nothomb, translated by Alison Anderson, Hygiène de l'assassin; republished as Hygiene and the Assassin, 2010:

     —Est-ce que, par hasard, vous oseriez me comparer aux plumitifs que vous interrogez d’habitude ?

     “Might you by any chance be comparing me to those scribblers you normally interview?”

Further reading

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