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fiacre

horse-drawn cab, hackney carriage

noun FYAH-kruh Rare
Travel & Places Transportation

Origin: Named after the Hotel de Saint-Fiacre in Paris, where such carriages were first hired out in the 17th century.

Usage Note

Fiacre refers to the four-wheeled horse-drawn carriage for hire that was the taxi of pre-automobile Paris. The word comes from the Hôtel de Saint-Fiacre in Paris, where such carriages were first rented out. Today it appears mainly in historical texts and period dramas; in modern French taxi is of course used.

Examples

"Ils ont pris un fiacre pour traverser Paris."

Natural Translation

They took a hackney cab to cross Paris.

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