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Distrait is a somewhat literary word with an unusual history. Borrowed from Anglo-French, it was used in the 15th century in a sense very close to that of "distraught," which means "deeply agitated or troubled." (Both words are ultimately from the Latin adjective distractus.) Later, during the 18th century, "distrait" appears to have been borrowed again from French in a milder sense closer to "preoccupied" or "distracted." Another peculiarity of the word is that it tends to be treated in English as if it were still a French word: it has a feminine variant, "distraite," like a French adjective, and it is pronounced as if French. It can still suggest agitation, but not as strongly as "distraught"; more often it means simply "mentally remote."
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Examples of distrait in a Sentence
Hunter Harris, Vulture, 30 Aug. 2021
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'distrait.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
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“Distrait.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/distrait. Accessed 18 Oct. 2024.
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