Word of the Day
: July 16, 2026bibelot
playWhat It Means
A bibelot is a small household ornament or decorative object.
// His grandfather set up a table every week at the flea market where he sold all sorts of bibelots and bric-a-brac, from ceramic figurines to tiny blown glass sculptures.
bibelot in Context
“One by one, the beads and baubles and charms and bibelots have been cleaned and polished and now they are being placed on shelves, in jars and containers, in bins, and in a bathtub in Beadniks’ new store on Main Street.” — Bob Audette, The Brattleboro (Vermont) Reformer, 21 June 2025
Did You Know?
The English language, it would seem, can’t get enough of synonyms for trinket, including gewgaw, gimcrack, and knickknack, just as lovers of tchotchkes can’t get enough of such ornamental trifles. Lady Charlotte Guest (1812-1895) was just such a lover of baubles and bric-a-brac. Not only was Guest an accomplished linguist, educator, publisher, and philanthropist, she also amassed collections of everything from porcelain to playing cards, which she ultimately donated to museums. We also have Guest to thank for the first known use in English of the French word for “trinket,” bibelot, which she recorded in a journal entry in 1873 while in Paris: “After 3, walked up to Lady Hopetoun’s to amuse her with some of our little bibelots.”
Test Your Vocabulary with M-W Quizzes
Test Your Vocabulary
Rearrange the letters to form a noun that refers to any of various alloys having tin as the chief component, some of which may be used in the making of certain collectible bibelots: WREEPT
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