nullité

nullity, worthlessness

noun noo-lee-TEH Rare

Origin: Latin nullitas, from nullus (none)

Also means

nonentity, useless person (informal)

Usage Note

Nullité has both a legal sense — the nullité of a contract (its legal invalidity) — and a colloquial pejorative sense meaning a person or thing of no worth: c'est une nullité (he's a complete dud). The legal sense is formal and technical; the informal sense is dismissive. The adjective nul (nul, nulla) is closely related.

Examples

"Le contrat a été annulé pour nullité de forme."

Natural Translation

The contract was cancelled due to formal nullity.

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