amour-propre
Americannoun
noun
Etymology
Origin of amour-propre
First recorded in 1775–85; literally, “self-love”
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
It’s hard to see how, other than in their amour-propre, since Chief Justice Hughes ruled nearly nine decades ago that Congress had no right to disregard the fiscal obligations it enacted.
From Los Angeles Times • May 15, 2023
Rousseau distinguished two forms of self-love, amour de soi and amour-propre.
From New York Times • Jun. 21, 2018
His lightly made up and prosthetised face really did resemble a vampire’s in daylight, and his sudden explosions of rage and amour-propre were an absolute joy.
From The Guardian • Jul. 17, 2017
It was a matter of amour-propre, but—again—also of tactics.
From The New Yorker • Nov. 17, 2016
Underneath the transports of patriotism, underneath the sincerity of religious fervour, the Frenchman digs down and finds amour-propre at the root of everything.
From Three French Moralists and The Gallantry of France by Gosse, Edmund
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
