observatoire

observatory

noun ob-sehr-vah-TWAHR Rare

Also means

monitoring body

Usage Note

Observatoire refers both to an astronomical observatory and to any official body that monitors or tracks data — l'Observatoire économique, l'Observatoire de la langue française. The Paris Observatory (l'Observatoire de Paris), founded in 1667, is one of the world's oldest and defined the Paris meridian before Greenwich was adopted.

Examples

"L'observatoire domine toute la vallée."

Natural Translation

The observatory overlooks the entire valley.

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