Liberal Dictionary English Dictionary
ci-devant [seeduh-vahn; English see-duh-vahn] ExamplesWord Origin adjective French.
- former: used especially in reference to a retired officeholder.
Origin of ci-devant literally, heretofore Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019 Examples from the Web for ci-devant Historical Examples of ci-devant
He nourished the hope that the ci-devant Vicomte might still be with La Boulaye.
Rafael Sabatini
It was the citizen of hearts replacing the ci-devant knave of hearts.
Anatole France
He had all the look, there was no denying it, of a ci-devant cleric.
Anatole France
How ardently he regretted that he had complied with the prayer of the ci-devant!
J. Sheridan Le Fanu
Even the ci-devant Ranger inclines to a similar way of thinking.
Captain Mayne Reid
British Dictionary definitions for ci-devant ci-devant adjective
- (esp of an office-holder) former; recent
Word Origin for ci-devant literally: heretofore Collins English Dictionary – Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
