nonchalance means indifference, unconcern; carelessness; coolness; disregard, detachment. It carries an Arena rating of 1912, earned across 59 head-to-head judged battles.
Among words judged in Lexicurio's Arena, nonchalance ranks #800 of 17,127 for Words That Escaped Their Books, #1,877 of 17,126 for Most Elegant Words, #1,998 of 17,134 for Most Malleable Words, #3,561 of 17,126 for Most Satisfying to Say.
nonchalance is pronounced /ˈnɒnʃələns/.
Why “nonchalance” is a great word
A studied display of cool indifference or unconcern, from French *nonchalance* (13th century), from Old French *nonchaloir* (“to have no importance”), from *non-* (“not”) + *chaloir* (“to be of concern”), from Latin *calēre* (“to be warm or hot”); first attested in English in the 1670s. Unlike “apathy,” which implies a hollowed-out absence of feeling, or “composure,” which denotes a hard-won calm maintained under pressure, nonchalance is a performance of coolness, a deliberate shedding of heat. It is the slow drag on a cigarette while the house burns, the unflinching gaze over a teacup at devastating news, the careless flick of a wrist that sends a diamond into the sea—a warmth withheld, a flame turned deliberately low.
Etymology
Borrowed from French nonchalance.
noun
- Indifference, unconcern; carelessness; coolness; disregard, detachment.
Definitions & examples from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 3.0).
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