divertissement

entertainment, amusement

noun dee-ver-tees-MAHN Rare

Origin: French 'divertir' (to divert, amuse) from Latin 'divertere'

Usage Note

Divertissement is formal and broad — it includes film, theatre, games, and any leisure activity. In music it refers to a light orchestral piece (un divertissement de Mozart). Pascal famously used the word philosophically to mean the distraction humans use to avoid confronting their condition. The verb is divertir and the reflexive se divertir means 'to enjoy oneself'.

Examples

"Le cinéma reste son divertissement préféré."

Natural Translation

Cinema remains his favourite form of entertainment.

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