Read along with the three podcasts, or open the full dictionary entry for Quaint for the definition, Arabic meaning, synonyms and example sentences.
Narrator: Today's word is "Quaint" — adjective, pronounced /kweɪnt/, with the stress on "quaint".
Narrator: Quaint means attractive or charming in an unusual, old-fashioned way.
Narrator: In plain English, quaint things are sweetly old-fashioned.
Narrator: It comes from the old French cointe, clever or elegant, from Latin cognitus, known.
Narrator: A common collocation is "quaint village", which describes a charming old place.
Narrator: It differs from "antique", because antique means old and valuable, while quaint means charmingly old-fashioned.
Narrator: In a second sense, quaint can be gently mocking, meaning out of date, as in "a quaint idea".
Narrator: Tourism, property, design and travel writing all rely on the word.
Narrator: So remember: quaint is old-fashioned charm, sometimes with a smile.
Speaker A: How was your weekend in the Cotswolds?
Speaker B: So QUAINT! It comes from old French cointe, elegant.
Speaker A: Thatched cottages?
Speaker B: And a tearoom with lace doilies.
Speaker A: Example sentences?
Speaker B: "We stayed in a quaint cottage", a holiday. "The shop sells quaint old maps", a find. "His views on women are rather quaint", a gentle criticism.
Speaker A: Common mistakes?
Speaker B: Quaint can sound patronising about people's ideas, so use it with care.
Speaker A: Close relatives?
Speaker B: Charming is its cousin, picturesque its twin, and old-world an alternative — yet quaint keeps its cosy charm!
Speaker B: Let's use "quaint" in AI prompts — useful for travel listings and property descriptions.
Speaker A: How for travel?
Speaker B: Set the scene.
Prompt: Write a two-sentence description of a quaint seaside village for a travel website.
Speaker A: And property?
Speaker B: Avoid clichés.
Prompt: Rewrite this estate agent listing to replace the word quaint with specific details.
Speaker A: Could it help design?
Speaker B: Yes, for style.
Prompt: Suggest a colour palette and fonts for a quaint countryside tearoom website.
Speaker A: One more?
Speaker B: A booking app.
Prompt: Write a push notification promoting weekend deals in quaint English villages.
Quaint — meaning in Arabic & definition More Q courses GL Dictionary