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Raconteur Has Old French Roots
If you’re a sage of sagas, a bard of ballads, or a pro in prose, you may have lost count of the accounts you’ve recounted. Some might call you a recounter, but as a master of narrative form you may find that recounter lacks a certain je ne sais quoi. Sure, it has a cool story—it traces back to the Latin verb computere, meaning “to count”—but so do many words: compute and computer, count and account, and neither last nor least, raconteur, a singsong title better fit for a whimsical storyteller. English speakers borrowed raconteur from French in the early 19th century.
Examples of raconteur in a Sentence
Bilge Ebiri, Vulture, 28 Jan. 2025
In a transfixing performance that balances colorful affectation with raw hunger, the actor makes Lee a magnetic raconteur whose shield of worldly composure falls away as Eugene (Drew Starkey) eludes his grasp, leaving him a virtual ghost by the end of the film.
—Kimberly Nordyke, The Hollywood Reporter, 22 Jan. 2025
Jim Dobson is an award-winning writer, author, and raconteur.
—Jim Dobson, Forbes, 20 Jan. 2025
Willem Dafoe as a reluctant vampire hunger and raconteur of the occult rounds out the cast with a touch of comedic relief.
—Scott Phillips, Forbes, 23 Dec. 2024
See all Example Sentences for raconteur 
Dictionary Entries Near raconteur
Cite this Entry
“Raconteur.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/raconteur. Accessed 13 Feb. 2025.
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