aliéné

lunatic, insane person

noun ah-lyeh-NEH Rare

Origin: Latin alienatus, past participle of alienare (to estrange, to make other)

Also means

alienated person (formal/dated)

Usage Note

Aliéné (feminine aliénée) is both a noun ('a lunatic') and an adjective ('alienated'). In older psychiatric language, aliéné mental was the clinical term for someone considered insane; the word now sounds dated and slightly derogatory. The modern psychiatric term is patient psychiatrique. The abstract sense of aliéner ('to alienate') remains current in sociology and Marxist discourse.

Examples

"L'aliéné errait seul dans les rues la nuit."

Natural Translation

The lunatic wandered alone in the streets at night.

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