carrefour

noun

car·​re·​four ˌker-ə-ˈfu̇r 

ˌka-rə-

1

: crossroads

2

: square, plaza

The farmers … preferred the open carrefour for their transactions …

—Thomas Hardy

Did you know?

An interesting thing about "carrefour" is that even though the second half of the word contains the number "four," it is actually the first half of the word that derives from the Latin word for "four." Carrefour derives via Middle French from Late Latin quadrifurcus, an adjective meaning "having four forks," formed by combining Latin quadri- ("four") and "furca" ("fork"). "Carrefour" has been a part of the English language since the 15th century. It once referred to an intersection of four roads at a single point, but later came to refer to any public square or plaza. "Carfax," a similar word that also derives from "quadrifurcus," can be found in some British place names, such as the primary intersection in the city of Oxford, England.

Synonyms of carrefour

• intersection
• corner
• junction

Examples of carrefour in a Sentence

our hotel in Montreal was adjacent to a noisy carrefour

Recent Examples on the Web

Youssouf, who’s been in Spain for 14 years, calls Lepe a carrefour, a crossroads. —Cynthia Gorney, National Geographic, 25 June 2019

Word History

Etymology

Middle French, from Late Latin quadrifurcum, neuter of quadrifurcus having four forks, from Latin quadri- + furca fork

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

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Geographical Definition

Carrefour

geographical name

Carre·​four ˌkär-ˈfu̇r 

residential city west of Port-au-Prince in southern Haiti population 430,000