# quaint

Pronunciation: say "KWAYNT" /kweɪnt/

## Adjective

1. Unusual in a pleasing way, especially through having an old-fashioned charm.
   - Simple: Pleasant and a little unusual, often in a charming, old-fashioned way.
   - _The coast road winds past quaint fishing villages and steep green cliffs._
   - _His habit of tipping his hat to strangers struck her as quaint._
2. Out of the ordinary in a way that seems strange or odd.
   - Simple: Different from what is normal in a strange way.
   - _He held the quaint view that letters should only ever be written in green ink._
   - _The new neighbor had the quaint habit of walking his cat on a leash every evening._

## Adjective

3. Made or devised with skill and cleverness. *(obsolete)*
   - Simple: Made or planned in a clever and skillful way.
4. Too particular or needlessly careful about details, in a fussy or prim way. *(obsolete)*
   - Simple: Much too fussy about small things, or too proper.
5. Of a person, clever in a sly, scheming way. *(obsolete)*
   - Simple: Describing a person who is clever and good at tricking others.

## Noun

6. The vulva, the external genital organs of a female. *(obsolete)*
   - Simple: The outer sex organs of a female body.

## Origin

Latin cognitus, the past participle of cognōscō ("I know"), became Old French cointe ("pretty, clever, knowing") and Anglo-Norman cointe or queinte. Middle English borrowed these as queynte or quoynte.

Source: DictionaryAI, https://dictionaryai.com/define/quaint (written from Wiktionary data, CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).