Flamboyant
/flæmˈbɔɪ.ənt/noun
Having a showy, extravagant, or strikingly ornate style.
Did you know?The word comes through French from a root meaning “to flame,” and its original sense was tied to a blazing, flame-like shape before it became a word for dazzling display.
Etymological Timeline
Late Latin
LL
flamma
“flame, fire”
Old French
OF
flamboyer
“to flame, blaze”
Medieval French
MF
flamboyant
“flaming, flame-like; of ornate flame-shaped decoration”
14th-15th Century
French
flamboyant
“a style of late Gothic architecture marked by flame-like tracery”
17th-19th Century
English
flamboyant
“showy, ornate, strikingly extravagant”