savoir-vivre
Knowing proper behavior
Savoir-vivre is the French term for knowing how to live well—social grace, tact, and the ability to behave appropriately in any situation.
It suggests more than mere etiquette: an instinctive feel for what's fitting, combined with ease and polish.
His savoir-vivre made him welcome in any company.
The term implies worldly sophistication without stuffiness.
Customs of polite conduct
- politenessCourteous, respectful conduct
- decorumFitting social conduct
- proprietyCorrectness of conduct
- protocolPrescribed conduct rules
courtesy · civility · tact · grace · refinement · social graces · deportment · breeding
Cultured elegance and complexity
- cosmopolitanCulturally sophisticated, internationally fluent
- culturedEducated in arts, manners
- worldlyExperienced in practical affairs
- urbaneRefined and courteous
elegant · finesse · polish · suave · debonair · jet-set · panache · élan
Receiving guests socially
- entertainingProviding amusement or enjoyment
- graciousnessCourteous, kind demeanor
- welcomeHospitable greeting offered
- generosityReadiness to give freely
warmth · guest · reception · convivial · salon · soirée · gathering · dinner party
State of relishing something
- pleasureHappy, satisfied feeling
- lifestylePersonal living pattern
- leisureFree time for relaxation
- appreciationRecognition of worth
indulgence · epicurean · gastronomy · wine · fine dining · luxury · comfort · celebration
manners
Customs of polite conduct
- politenessCourteous, respectful conduct
- decorumFitting social conduct
- proprietyCorrectness of conduct
protocol · courtesy · civility · tact · grace · refinement · social graces · deportment · breeding · gentility
sophistication
Cultured elegance and complexity
- cosmopolitanCulturally sophisticated, internationally fluent
- culturedEducated in arts, manners
- worldlyExperienced in practical affairs
urbane · elegant · finesse · polish · suave · debonair · jet-set · panache · élan · chic
hosting
Receiving guests socially
- entertainingProviding amusement or enjoyment
- graciousnessCourteous, kind demeanor
- welcomeHospitable greeting offered
generosity · warmth · guest · reception · convivial · salon · soirée · gathering · dinner party · table manners
enjoyment
State of relishing something
appreciation · indulgence · epicurean · gastronomy · wine · fine dining · luxury · comfort · celebration · festivity
- etiquettemanners, politeness, etiquette, table manners, courtesy
savoir-vivreboorishness
Crude, uncouth conduct
crudeness · vulgarity · uncouthness · gaucheness · bad manners
savoir-vivrenaïveté
Inexperienced trustfulness
unsophistication · provincialism · awkwardness · unworldliness · naivety