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beau

(bō)

n. pl. beaus or beaux (bōz)

1. A male companion or friend with whom one has a sexual or romantic relationship.

2. A dandy; a fop.

[French, from beau, bel, handsome, from Latin bellus; see deu-² in the Appendix of Indo-European roots.]

Indo-European & Semitic Roots Appendices

Thousands of entries in the dictionary include etymologies that trace their origins back to reconstructed proto-languages. You can obtain more information about these forms in our online appendices:

Indo-European Roots

Semitic Roots

The Indo-European appendix covers nearly half of the Indo-European roots that have left their mark on English words. A more complete treatment of Indo-European roots and the English words derived from them is available in our Dictionary of Indo-European Roots.

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