tour de force definition larousse

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 tour

nom masculin

(de tourner)

• 1.  Dimension de la ligne fermée qui constitue la limite extérieure de quelque chose, notamment certaines parties du corps : Une colonne de trois mètres de tour. Prendre le tour de taille d'une cliente.
• 2.  Pourtour, partie périphérique, bord de quelque chose, d'un lieu : Le tour du lac est planté d'arbres.
• 3.  Action de passer un lien autour de quelque chose ; portion d'un lien passé autour d'un objet : Mettre plusieurs tours de corde à un paquet.
• 4.  Action de tourner un objet sur lui-même : Deux tours de clé.

Synonymes :

révolution - rotation

• 6.  Action de se déplacer en suivant le pourtour de quelque chose, et en revenant à son point de départ : Faire le tour du lac. Un tour de piste.
• 7.  Examen d'une question dans tous ses points : Faire le tour d'un problème.
• 8.  Voyage, périple qui conduit dans les principaux lieux d'une région, d'un pays, d'un continent, etc. : Faire un tour d'Europe.

balade - excursion - marche - promenade - ronde

• 10.  Numéro exigeant des qualités particulières d'adresse et que l'on exécute pour divertir le public : Un tour de prestidigitation. Un tour de cartes.

blague (familier) - entourloupe (familier) - entourloupette (familier) - farce - niche

allure - couleur - façon - forme - physionomie - tournure

• 13.  Construction particulière d'un ensemble de termes, propre à un écrivain, à une discipline, à une époque, etc. : Ce tour appartient au français classique.
• 14.  Moment pour quelqu'un, quelque chose de faire ou de subir quelque chose lorsque plusieurs personnes ou plusieurs choses doivent, dans un certain ordre, faire ou subir quelque chose de similaire : Attends ton tour. Au tour du salon, maintenant, il faut tout ranger.
• 15.  Chacune des consultations dans un vote, qui peut en comporter plusieurs : Le second tour de l'élection présidentielle.

Chorégraphie

Expressions avec tour

À double tour,, familier. avoir fait le tour de quelqu'un, de quelque chose,, familier. avoir plus d'un tour dans son sac,, cela vous jouera un (mauvais) tour,, donner le tour,, en un tour de main (vieilli, en un tournemain ) ,, faire le tour de quelque chose,, faire un tour d'horizon,, le tour est joué,, tour à tour,, tour de chant,, tour de cou,, tour de force,, tour de main,, tour d'esprit,, tour de table,, troisième tour,, tour en l'air,, tours chaînés,, tour par minute,, tour par seconde,.

Traditions populaires

Tour de France,

Homonymes de tour.

• tour nom féminin
• tourd nom masculin

Difficultés de tour

ORTHOGRAPHE

Tour à tour . Sans trait d'union et invariable.

Tour par minute, tour par seconde . S'abrègent en tr/min, tr/s (sans point abréviatif).

À tour de bras . Avec tour au singulier : frapper à tour de bras .

En un tour de main / en un tournemain . On dit plutôt aujourd'hui en un tour de main .

Chacun à son tour / chacun son tour . Chacun son tour est aujourd'hui admis dans l'expression orale courante. recommandation : Dans l'expression soignée, en particulier à l'écrit, préférer chacun à son tour : vous passerez chacun à votre tour ; c'est chacun à son tour .

À mon ( ton, son , etc.) tour de . On dit : c'est à mon tour de distribuer (à préférer à : c'est à mon tour à distribuer ).

Mots proches

À DÉCOUVRIR DANS L'ENCYCLOPÉDIE

• avulsion dentaire . [MÉDECINE]
• blaireau . [FAUNE]
• Code civil.
• Crimée (guerre de) [1854-1856].
• Gama . Vasco de Gama .
• groupe sanguin.
• Internationale (III e ).
• Montagnards.
• ornithorynque . [FAUNE]
• pieuvre ou poulpe . [FAUNE]
• principes de plaisir et de réalité.
• République (V e ).
• termite . [FAUNE]

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« C'[était] l'éducation et les mœurs qui [faisait] la bonne société. » Combien de verbes mettez-vous au pluriel ?

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tour de force

Definition of tour de force

Examples of tour de force in a sentence.

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'tour de force.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

1802, in the meaning defined above

Dictionary Entries Near tour de force

tour d'horizon

Cite this Entry

“Tour de force.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary , Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/tour%20de%20force. Accessed 4 Jun. 2024.

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tour de force

[ t oo r d uh fawrs , - fohrs ; French too r d uh fawrs ]

Herman Melville's Moby Dick was a tour de force.

The way the president got his bill through the Senate was a tour de force.

• a feat requiring unusual strength, skill, or ingenuity.

/ ˈtʊə də ˈfɔːs; tur də fɔrs /

• a masterly or brilliant stroke, creation, effect, or accomplishment
• A feat accomplished through great skill and ability: “The speech was a tour de force; it swept the audience off its feet.”

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Word history and origins.

Origin of tour de force 1

Example Sentences

In her aching memoir, she embarks on a tour de force examination of her childhood, marked first by her mother’s abandoning her when she was a toddler and later by the death of her beloved father.

Through the late 1960s, Capote claimed to be writing his masterpiece, his tour de force based on his swans, but several deadlines passed for it.

At 35, Hawa Hassan is already a tour de force when it comes to Somali food in America.

Understated yet opulent, measured, and intensely creepy, it’s a tour de force in balancing uncomfortable levels of tension and suspense with deep pathos.

Page’s tour de force performance in Hard Candy led, two years later, to Juno, a low-budget indie film that brought Page Oscar, BAFTA and Golden Globe nominations and sudden megafame.

His family memoir, Sweet and Low, is a tour de force of reporting and memory—tender, curious, and exceptionally funny.

It is a tour de force of reporting: 13,000 words on a two-week deadline.

It's also a masterpiece of choreographed c--tery—Joffrey's final tour de force.

And, of course, she's best known for her ball-busting tour de force as Ed Helms's wife in The Hangover.

As a result, his version is a technical tour de force but a movie that never gets under your skin.

As a tour de force in the gentle art of lying, the snake-story is justly esteemed.

As a tour de force of geometrical imagination it would be difficult to parallel this hypothesis.

The physical tour de force, was one of those feats of agility in which Neb had been my instructor, ten years before.

If the Mastersingers was a little less successful as a work of art we should still have to regard it as an amazing tour de force.

The music for such incidents cannot be of the highest beauty; here we have one of the cases of a tour de force.

Words and phrases

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tour de force noun

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What does the phrase tour de force mean?

There is one meaning in OED's entry for the phrase tour de force . See ‘Meaning & use’ for definition, usage, and quotation evidence.

Entry status

OED is undergoing a continuous programme of revision to modernize and improve definitions. This entry has not yet been fully revised.

How common is the phrase tour de force ?

How is the phrase tour de force pronounced, british english, where does the phrase tour de force come from.

Earliest known use

The earliest known use of the phrase tour de force is in the 1800s.

OED's earliest evidence for tour de force is from 1802, in a letter by Lord Elgin.

tour de force is a borrowing from French.

Etymons: French tour .

Nearby entries

• toupee, n. 1727–
• toupeed, adj. 1847–
• toupet, n. 1728–
• toupeted, adj. 1903–
• toupet-titmouse, n. 1785–
• tour, n. c1320–
• tour, v. 1746–
• Tourangeau, n. & adj. 1883–
• Tourangeois, adj. & n. 1857–
• tourbillion | tourbillon, n. 1477–
• tour de force, n. 1802–
• Tour de France, n. 1922–
• tour d'horizon, n. 1952–
• tourelle, n. c1330–
• tourer, n. 1927–
• tourette, n.¹ 1881–
• Tourette, n.² 1899–
• Tourettism, n. 1981–
• tourification, n. 1802–
• tourify, v. 1820–
• tourifying, adj. 1825–

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Meaning & use

Pronunciation, entry history for tour de force, n..

tour de force, n. was first published in 1913; not yet revised.

tour de force, n. was last modified in July 2023.

Revision of the OED is a long-term project. Entries in oed.com which have not been revised may include:

• corrections and revisions to definitions, pronunciation, etymology, headwords, variant spellings, quotations, and dates;
• new senses, phrases, and quotations which have been added in subsequent print and online updates.

Revisions and additions of this kind were last incorporated into tour de force, n. in July 2023.

Earlier versions of this entry were published in:

OED First Edition (1913)

• Find out more

OED Second Edition (1989)

• View tour de force in OED Second Edition

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Citation details

Factsheet for tour de force, n., browse entry.

• tour de force
• 1.1 Etymology
• 1.2 Pronunciation
• 1.3.1 Related terms
• 1.3.2 Translations
• 1.3.3 See also
• 2.1.1 Synonyms
• 3.1 Etymology
• 3.2 Pronunciation
• 3.3.1 Descendants
• 4.1.1 Declension

English [ edit ]

Etymology [ edit ].

Borrowed from French tour de force ( “ feat of strength ” ) , circa 19th century.

Pronunciation [ edit ]

• ( US ) IPA ( key ) : /ˌtuɹ.dəˈfoɹs/ , /ˌtuɹ.dəˈfɔɹs/

Noun [ edit ]

tour de force ( plural tours de force )

• 1976 , Richard Dawkins , The Selfish Gene , Kindle edition, OUP Oxford, published 2016 , page 429 : Much as I admire Wilson’s tour de force —I wish people would read it more and read about it less—my hackles have always risen at the entirely false suggestion that his book influenced mine.

Related terms [ edit ]

• tour d'horizon

Translations [ edit ]

See also [ edit ].

• coup de force

Dutch [ edit ]

tour de force   m ( plural tours de force )

• exploit , tour de force

Synonyms [ edit ]

• huzarenstuk

French [ edit ]

Literally, “ turn of strength ” , or more loosely translated as “ turn of force ” .

• IPA ( key ) : /tuʁ də fɔʁs/

Descendants [ edit ]

German [ edit ].

tour de force   f ( genitive tour de force , plural tours de force )

• Alternative spelling of Tour de Force

Declension [ edit ]

• English terms borrowed from French
• English terms derived from French
• English terms with IPA pronunciation
• English terms with audio links
• English lemmas
• English nouns
• English countable nouns
• English multiword terms
• English terms with usage examples
• English terms with quotations
• Dutch lemmas
• Dutch nouns
• Dutch multiword terms
• Dutch masculine nouns
• French terms with IPA pronunciation
• French terms with audio links
• French lemmas
• French nouns
• French countable nouns
• French multiword terms
• French masculine nouns
• German lemmas
• German nouns
• German multiword terms
• German feminine nouns
• Terms with Dutch translations
• Terms with Estonian translations
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Definition of tour de force noun from the Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary

tour de force

• a cinematic tour de force
• It was described as a ‘literary tour de force’.

Questions about grammar and vocabulary?

Find the answers with Practical English Usage online, your indispensable guide to problems in English.

Nearby words

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Meaning of tour de force in English

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• a feather in your cap idiom
• accomplishment
• achievement
• achievement test
• have something to your credit idiom
• have something under your belt idiom
• secret sauce
• sense of achievement
• stratosphere

Examples of tour de force

Translations of tour de force.

Get a quick, free translation!

Word of the Day

the ability to move freely or be easily moved

Keeping up appearances (Talking about how things seem)

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What is the translation of "tour de force" in English?

"tour de force" in english, tour de force [example].

• volume_up amazing feat
• tour de force

tour de force {m}

• volume_up feat of strength

"tour de force" in French

• volume_up tour de force

Translations

• "performance"
• open_in_new Link to source
• warning Request revision

tour de force {masculine}

Context sentences, french english contextual examples of "tour de force" in english.

These sentences come from external sources and may not be accurate. bab.la is not responsible for their content.

Monolingual examples

French how to use "tour de force" in a sentence, french how to use "amazing feat" in a sentence, french how to use "feat of strength" in a sentence, similar translations, similar translations for "tour de force" in english.

• forcefulness
• siege-tower
• tour de France
• tour de Londres
• tour de Pise
• tour de batte
• tour de cartes
• tour de chant
• tour de cochon
• tour de contrôle
• tour de cou
• tour de forage
• tour de garde
• tour de guet
• tour de hanches
• tour de la corde
• tour de lit
• tour de luge
• tour de main
• tour de manège qui fait peur
• tour de passe-passe
• tour de poitrine

Search for more words in the English-French dictionary .

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Definitions of 'tour de force', pronunciations of the word 'tour de force'.

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Translations of 'tour de force'.

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• tour de force

noun as in spectacular achievement

Weak matches

• accomplishment
• achievement
• chef-d'oeuvre
• feat of strength
• grand achievement
• great achievement
• magnum opus
• master stroke
• masterpiece
• performance
• pièce de résistance
• stroke of genius

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Example sentences.

In her aching memoir, she embarks on a tour de force examination of her childhood, marked first by her mother’s abandoning her when she was a toddler and later by the death of her beloved father.

Through the late 1960s, Capote claimed to be writing his masterpiece, his tour de force based on his swans, but several deadlines passed for it.

At 35, Hawa Hassan is already a tour de force when it comes to Somali food in America.

Understated yet opulent, measured, and intensely creepy, it’s a tour de force in balancing uncomfortable levels of tension and suspense with deep pathos.

Page’s tour de force performance in Hard Candy led, two years later, to Juno, a low-budget indie film that brought Page Oscar, BAFTA and Golden Globe nominations and sudden megafame.

His family memoir, Sweet and Low, is a tour de force of reporting and memory—tender, curious, and exceptionally funny.

It is a tour de force of reporting: 13,000 words on a two-week deadline.

It's also a masterpiece of choreographed c--tery—Joffrey's final tour de force.

And, of course, she's best known for her ball-busting tour de force as Ed Helms's wife in The Hangover.

As a result, his version is a technical tour de force but a movie that never gets under your skin.

As a tour de force in the gentle art of lying, the snake-story is justly esteemed.

As a tour de force of geometrical imagination it would be difficult to parallel this hypothesis.

The physical tour de force, was one of those feats of agility in which Neb had been my instructor, ten years before.

If the Mastersingers was a little less successful as a work of art we should still have to regard it as an amazing tour de force.

The music for such incidents cannot be of the highest beauty; here we have one of the cases of a tour de force.

Related Words

Words related to tour de force are not direct synonyms, but are associated with the word tour de force . Browse related words to learn more about word associations.

noun as in something completed successfully; goal reached

• acquirement
• acquisition
• actualization
• consummation
• contrivance
• effectuation
• encompassment
• fulfillment
• realization

noun as in model

noun as in achievement, often by maneuver

• coup d'état
• coup de mâitre
• successful stroke

noun as in achievement

• happenin'

Viewing 5 / 18 related words

On this page you'll find 39 synonyms, antonyms, and words related to tour de force, such as: accomplishment, achievement, attainment, chef-d'oeuvre, conquest, and deed.

From Roget's 21st Century Thesaurus, Third Edition Copyright © 2013 by the Philip Lief Group.