patelin

French

Etymology

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /pa.tlɛ̃/

• Audio:

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• Audio:

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Noun

patelin m (plural patelins)

1. (colloquial) backwater, one-horse town
   • 2014, Édouard Louis, En finir avec Eddy Bellegueule [The End of Eddy], Le Seuil:

     Ils commencent l’usine après le collège pis ils restent dans le village toute leur vie ou alors ils s’installent dans un patelin mais pas trop loin.

     They start working in the factory after secondary school, then they stay in the village their whole life, or else they move to some backwater, but not too far away.

   • 2016, Gaël Faye, Petit Pays [Small Country]:

     Papa […] venait d’un patelin dans les montagnes qui ressemblait à s’y méprendre´aux paysages du Burundi

     Dad […] came from a small village in the mountains, which might easily be mistaken for the landscape of Burundi

Adjective

patelin (feminine pateline, masculine plural patelins, feminine plural patelines)

1. fawning; unctuous

   Synonyms: doucereux, mielleux

Further reading

• “patelin”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012.

Anagrams

• épilant, plainte, platine, pliante