banquette

[ bang-ket; locally bang-kit ]

noun

1. a long bench with an upholstered seat, especially one along a wall, as in a restaurant.
2. an embankment for buttressing the base of a levee and forming a berm.
3. Chiefly Coastal Louisiana and East Texas. a sidewalk, especially a raised one of bricks or planks.
4. Fortification. a platform or step along the inside of a parapet, for soldiers to stand on when firing.
5. a ledge running across the back of a buffet.
6. a bench for passengers on top of a stagecoach.

banquette

/ bæŋˈkɛt /

noun

1. an upholstered bench
2. (formerly) a raised part behind a parapet
3. a footbridge

Word History and Origins

Origin of banquette¹

1620–30; < French < Provençal banqueta, equivalent to banc bench ( bank ³ ) + -eta -ette

Word History and Origins

Origin of banquette¹

C17: from French, from Provençal banqueta , literally: a little bench, from banc bench; see bank ³

Example Sentences

Grabbing a seat on the gray banquette by the window, I pulled aside a blue curtain and was astounded by the view of peachy-pink clouds as we rolled across the rugged desert.

From Los Angeles Times

Customers occupied almost every table and banquette, many chowing down the restaurant’s signature chop suey — which, like a lot of food served at the Chicago Cafe, is a Chinese American dish unfamiliar in China itself.

From Los Angeles Times

His co-star Daniel Radcliffe and Mr. Radcliffe’s longtime girlfriend, the actress Erin Darke, watched from their perch on a banquette as they greeted well-wishers.

From New York Times

Jim Parsons and Celia Keenan-Bolger, both nominees for their performances as teenage siblings in Paula Vogel’s family drama “Mother Play,” huddled in a banquette.

From New York Times

“We have an outdoor kitchen with a banquette that we use in the summer by the pool, so now we keep that out during the winter,” she said, noting that the outdoor kitchen was designed to be used in all seasons.

From Seattle Times