dégagé means unconstrained; easy; free. It carries an Arena rating of 1548, earned across 2 head-to-head judged battles.
Among words judged in Lexicurio's Arena, dégagé ranks #2,696 of 17,126 for Most Elegant Words, #5,797 of 17,130 for Most Beautiful Words, #6,241 of 17,134 for Most Malleable Words, #8,496 of 17,140 for Most Whimsical Words.
dégagé is pronounced /ˌdeɪɡɑːˈʒeɪ/.
Why “dégagé” is a great word
Having an unconstrained, free, and easy manner or appearance. Borrowed from French dégagé, the past participle of dégager (“to disengage, free, clear”), from Old French desgagier, from des- (“dis-”) + gage (“pledge”). Unlike “nonchalant,” which implies a casual indifference, or “formal,” which is strictly bound by convention, dégagé signifies a positive, conscious liberty. It is the drape of linen on a summer frame, a dancer’s effortless extension into space, or an unhurried crossing of a room—the graceful assertion of self, unpledged to any posture but its own, and quietly complete.
Etymology
Borrowed from French dégagé.
adj
- unconstrained; easy; freee.g.“a graceful and dégagé manner” — 1835, Edgar Allan Poe, King Pest:
Definitions & examples from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 3.0).
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