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effete
[ ih-feet ]
adjective
- lacking in wholesome vigor; degenerate; decadent:
an effete, overrefined society.
- exhausted of vigor or energy; worn out:
an effete political force.
Synonyms: enervated
- unable to produce; sterile.
effete
/ ɪˈfiːt /
adjective
- weak, ineffectual, or decadent as a result of overrefinement
an effete academic
- exhausted of vitality or strength; worn out; spent
- (of animals or plants) no longer capable of reproduction
Derived Forms
- efˈfetely, adverb
- efˈfeteness, noun
Other Words From
- ef·fetely adverb
- ef·feteness noun
- nonef·fete adjective
- nonef·fetely adverb
- nonef·feteness noun
- unef·fete adjective
- unef·feteness noun
Word History and Origins
Word History and Origins
Origin of effete1
Example Sentences
It’s in his cocky but effete delivery, the same vocal quality I heard when theater queens debated who was the superior Mame at West Village gay bars.
“I’ll go after him for being ‘this effete knower of arcane knowledge, who knows little tidbits that no one would care about.’
Perfetti gives him an effete contemporaneity, but the character needs new lines more than a new look.
Mr. Zeman, a rambunctious, old-school politician with a knack for connecting with ordinary people, delights in offending effete liberal sensibilities and conventional wisdom.
Funny, frail, effete, Bettany’s Warhol is as meticulously impersonal as his art, and my goodness he whines.
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