English · Idiom Historical

bon ton

Preserved but no longer current.

Meaning · English

Good manners or manners accredited by good society.

Era: ca. 1898 (Victorian)

Sources & notes

Reproduced from Brewer’s Dictionary of Phrase and Fable (1898 edition, public domain; archive.org, retrieved 2026-07-31; OCR text, minor errors possible). Reflects the scholarship and attitudes of its era.

Topics: Historical slang (1800s)

Common questions

What does “bon ton” mean?

Good manners or manners accredited by good society.

Is “bon ton” formal or informal?

No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.

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