effleurer

== French == === Etymology === From Middle French effleurer, from Old French esflourer, equivalent to ex- (“ex-”) +‎ fleurer (“sprinkle”). In some senses, from Middle French fleur (“surface, top layer”), ultimately from Proto-West Germanic *flōr (“ground, floor”), from Proto-Germanic *flōraz. === Pronunciation === IPA(key): /e.flœ.ʁe/ === Verb === effleurer to stroke gently, to touch lightly Synonym: caresser to brush over, to brush past (figuratively) to skim over (a subject) ==== Conjugation ==== ==== Descendants ==== → English: efflower === Further reading === “effleurer”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012