faux pas

Unadapted borrowing from French faux pas (“faux pas, blunder; misstep, false step”).

Singular

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /fəʊ pɑː/

• Audio (Southern England)

  (file)

Plural

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /fəʊ pɑːz/

• Audio (Southern England)

  (file)

faux pas (plural faux pas)

1. An embarrassing or tactless blunder.

   Synonyms: misstep, mistake, blunder; see also Thesaurus:error

   • 1777, Richard Brinsley Sheridan, The School for Scandal, IV.iii:

     Now my dear Lady Teazle if you but once make a trifling Faux Pas you can't conceive how cautious you would grow, and how ready to humour and agree with your Husband.

   • 1906, Chesterton, Charles Dickens, chapter 2:

     A saint after repentance will forgive himself for a sin; a man about town will never forgive himself for a faux pas.

   • 2023 June 10, Roula Khalaf, “Lunch with the FT: François Hollande”, in FT Weekend, Life & Arts, page 3:

     He was also prone to faux pas, none as memorable as his 2014 secret escapade from the Élysée. He was captured in full-faced helmet on the back of a motor scooter on his way to meet his mistress, the actress Julie Gayet, who is now his wife.

• Especially used in social situations and contexts.

• IPA^(key): /fo pa/, /fo pɑ/

• Audio

  (file)

faux pas m (plural faux pas)

1. stumble, misstep, false step
2. (figuratively) faux pas, blunder

   Synonyms: gaffe (“informal”), bourde (“informal”), impair

• → Danish: faux pas
• → English: faux pas
• → German: Fauxpas
• → Polish: faux pas
• → Russian: фо па́ (fo pá)

• faute de goût

Unadapted borrowing from French faux pas.

• IPA^(key): /fɔ ˈpa/

• Audio

  (file)

faux pas n (indeclinable)

1. faux pas, blunder

   Synonyms: gafa, nietakt, wtopa, wpadka

• faux pas in Wielki słownik języka polskiego, Instytut Języka Polskiego PAN
• faux pas in Polish dictionaries at PWN