mirobolant

From myrobolan (“myrobalan”), from Latin myrobalanum, from Ancient Greek μυροβάλανος (murobálanos). The fruit's name is related to mirer (“to stare intensely”) or mirum (“wonder”).

• IPA^(key): /mi.ʁɔ.bɔ.lɑ̃/

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mirobolant (feminine singular mirobolante, masculine plural mirobolants, feminine plural mirobolantes)

1. great, extraordinary, incredible

   L'État a dépensé des sommes mirobolantes sur ce projet.

   The State spent an extraordinary amount of funds on this project.

   • 1884, Joris-Karl Huysmans, “IX”, in À rebours, page 129:

     Son ennui devint sans borne ; la joie de posséder de mirobolantes floraisons était tarie ; il était déjà blasé sur leur contexture et sur leurs nuances ; […]

     His boredom soon had no limits; the joy of possessing stunning blossoms had dried up; their hues and their contexture had become distasteful to him; […]

2. extremely unrealizable, infeasible (too magnificent or beautiful to be practicable)

   Le projet fut tout à fait mirobolant.

   The project was entirely beyond feasibility.

• → Italian: mirabolante
• → Portuguese: mirabolante
• → Romanian: mirobolant

mirobolant m (plural mirobolants)

1. (rare, ironic) wonder, marvel (something extraordinary, causing amazement)

• “mirobolant” in le Trésor de la langue française informatisé (The Digitized Treasury of the French Language).

Borrowing from French mirobolant.

mirobolant m or n (feminine singular mirobolantă, masculine plural mirobolanți, feminine and neuter plural mirobolante)

1. extraordinary, incredible, magnificent