rendezvous

English

Alternative forms

Etymology

Borrowed from French rendez-vous (appointment), noun derived from second person plural imperative of se rendre (to go to), literally, [you (imperative)] go to, get yourself to [a place].

Pronunciation

  • (UK) IPA(key): /ˈɹɒndɪˌvuː/, /ˈɹɒndeɪ̯ˌvuː/
  • (US) IPA(key): /ˈɹɑndəˌvu/, /ˈɹɑndeɪ̯ˌvu/
  • Audio (US):(file)
  • Audio (General American):(file)

Noun

rendezvous (plural rendezvous or (rare) rendezvouses)

  1. A meeting or date.
    I have a rendezvous with a friend in three hours.
    • 1845, Dublin University Magazine, volume 25, page 39:
      The hare lends its form to the witch for her twilight flittings and scuddings to the place of some unhallowed rendezvous.
    • 1984, Ric Ocasek, “You Might Think”, in Heartbeat City[1], performed by The Cars:
      You might think it's foolish / This chancy rendezvous / (You might think) You might think I'm crazy / (All I want) All I want is you
  2. An agreement to meet at a certain place and time.
    Get the party started at the rendezvous at oh six hours.
  3. A place appointed for a meeting, or at which persons customarily meet.
  4. (military) The appointed place for troops, or for the ships of a fleet, to assemble; also, a place for enlistment.
  5. (astronautics) A set of orbital maneuvers during which two spacecraft arrive at the same orbit and approach to a very close distance.
  6. (obsolete) A retreat or refuge.

Usage notes

The plural form of rendezvous (/-vu/) is normally rendezvous (/-vuz/ or /-vu/). Rarely, the form rendezvouses is encountered.

Synonyms

  • (military): RV (abbreviation)

Descendants

  • Welsh: rondefŵ
  • Welsh: randibŵ

Translations

Verb

rendezvous (third-person singular simple present rendezvouses or rendezvous, present participle rendezvousing, simple past and past participle rendezvoused)

  1. (intransitive) To meet at an agreed time and place.
    Let's rendezvous at the bordello at 8:00 and go from there.
    • 1757, T[obias] Smollett, chapter V, in A Complete History of England, [], volume II, London: [] James Rivington and James Fletcher, [], →OCLC, 3rd book (From the Death of King John to the Death of Edward III.), § XLIII, page 41:
      [H]e ſupplied Charles vvith a numerous army, vvhich rendezvouſed at Angers, under the command of his eldeſt ſon John duke of Normandy, attended by ſeveral princes of the blood and the flovver of the French nobility.
    • 2002, Michel Faber, The Crimson Petal and the White, Canongate Books (2010), page 392:
      In the entrance-hall, a surprising number of opera-goers have already rendezvoused.
    • 2024 February 16, Minju Pak, “Ode to a Punk Rock ‘Sex God’”, in The New York Times[2], →ISSN:
      They saw each other four times after that, rendezvousing at New York locations reflecting their own tastes. For him, the Knickerbocker Bar & Grill; for her, the Standard and Ludlow hotels.

Translations

See also

  • rendez-vous for French definition, spelling, and pronunciation

Czech

Alternative forms

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): [ˈrandɛvuː]

Noun

rendezvous n (indeclinable)

  1. date, appointment (meeting with a lover or potential lover)
    Synonym: rande

Further reading

Danish

Etymology

Borrowed from French rendez-vous.

Noun

rendezvous n (singular definite rendezvouset or rendezvous'et, plural indefinite rendezvouser or rendezvous'er)

  1. rendezvous

Inflection

Declension of rendezvous
neuter
gender
singular plural
indefinite definite indefinite definite
nominative rendezvous rendezvouset
rendezvous'et
rendezvouser
rendezvous'er
rendezvouserne
rendezvous'erne
genitive rendezvous' rendezvousets
rendezvous'ets
rendezvousers
rendezvous'ers
rendezvousernes
rendezvous'ernes

Synonyms

Indonesian

Etymology

Unadapted borrowing from French rendez-vous (appointment).

Noun

rendezvous

  1. rendezvous
    1. a place appointed for a meeting, or at which persons customarily meet
    2. a meeting
      Synonym: pertemuan
    3. a date
      Synonym: kencan

Further reading