belles-lettres
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belles-lettres
- /ˌbɛlˈlɛtɹ(ə)/
Where it comes from
Borrowed from French belles-lettres (“fine writings”), a parallel construction with the beaux arts (“fine arts”). Littré considered the belles-lettres to embrace grammar, rhetoric, and poetry. Sense embracing all of the humanities under the influence of Latin literae humaniores.
noun belles lettres · belles-letters · belle-lettre
- The humanities.
-
Literature, particularly light compositions valued for their aesthetic properties.
That vapid, half naturalized term ‘belles-lettres,’ which has had some currency as a substitute for the term ‘literature.’
Similar: polite literature
- Literary studies, particularly literary aesthetics.
Translations
Every language
noun light literary compositions valued for their aesthetic properties
| Español | bellas letras, buenas letras |
|---|---|
| 한국어 | 순문학 sunmunhak |
| 日本語 | 純文学 junbungaku |
| 中文 | 純文學 /纯文学 chúnwénxué, 美文 měiwén, 詩禮 /诗礼 shīlǐ |
| Português | belas-letras |
| Français | belles-lettres |
| Deutsch | Belles Lettres, schöne Literatur, Belletristik |
| Română | beletristică |
| Русский | худо́жественная литерату́ра xudóžestvennaja literatúra, беллетри́стика belletrístika |
| Tiếng Việt | văn chương |
| العربية | أَدَب ʔadab |
Talk about this word "belles-lettres." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/belles-lettres. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026. belles-lettres. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/belles-lettres "belles-lettres." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/belles-lettres.Cite this
@misc{belles_lettres_2026,
title = {belles-lettres},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/belles-lettres},
urldate = {2026-11-06}
}
