malaise

unease

noun mah-LEZ Rare

Also means

malaise

Usage Note

Malaise is masculine (un malaise) and covers both a physical feeling of faintness and a broader social or psychological discomfort. The expression avoir un malaise means to feel faint or unwell. The word was borrowed into English essentially unchanged, though in French it is more concrete and physical than its English counterpart.

Examples

"Il a eu un malaise en plein cours."

Natural Translation

He had a fainting spell right in the middle of class.

Literal Translation

He had a malaise in full class.

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