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laquais

lackey, footman

noun lah-KEH Rare

Origin: French from Dutch 'laquei' (servant)

Also means

servile person

Usage Note

Laquais historically meant a uniformed male servant or footman. Today it is used figuratively and pejoratively to describe someone who acts in a servile or sycophantic way toward a powerful person. The word is invariable in plural: des laquais. The final 's' is always silent.

Examples

"Il se comportait comme un laquais devant son patron."

Natural Translation

He behaved like a lackey in front of his boss.

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