filon
vein (of ore), seam
noun fee-LOHN Rare
Origin: French fil (thread, wire)
Also means
goldmine (figurative)
Usage Note
Filon in mining refers to a seam or vein of ore. Figuratively, trouver le bon filon means to find a lucrative niche or a great deal — very common in informal speech. The final -n is nasal and the -on is not pronounced as a separate 'n'.
Examples
"Les mineurs ont découvert un filon d'or."
Natural Translation
The miners discovered a vein of gold.
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