Boudoir

Pronunciation

• IPA: /ˈbuːdwɑː/

Origin

Borrowing from fr {{2}} boudoir, from bouder ("to sulk").

Full definition of boudoir

Noun

1. A woman's private sitting room, dressing room, or bedroom.
• Wodehouse Offing|XII|I found her in her boudoir getting outside a dish of tea and a crumpet.

Usage notes

Strictly refers only to a woman’s room, but sometimes used informally or humorously by men to refer to their inner sanctum, as in The Big Sleep (1939), by American writer Raymond Chandler, where Philip Marlowe (the hero, a man) says (p. 53):

“Tut, tut,” I said. “Come into my boudoir.”

Coordinate terms

• cabinet, study male equivalent