arrondissement

noun

ar·​ron·​disse·​ment ə-ˈrän-də-smənt  ˌa-ˌrōⁿ-(ˌ)dē-ˈsmäⁿ 

1

: an administrative district of some large French cities

2

: the largest division of a French department

Examples of arrondissement in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

For several years, the creative has owned an apartment in the French capital’s 9th arrondissement—a 753-square-foot space that, since becoming a new mother, Chen wanted to make more family-friendly and functional. —Annabelle Dufraigne, Architectural Digest, 4 Apr. 2026

The studio in Paris will house all of Rodeo FX’s French divisions, including Film & Episodic, Advertising & Experiences, and Mikros Animation, and is based in Rue Dieu, a stone’s throw from the Canal Saint Martin in the capital’s 10th arrondissement. —Melanie Goodfellow, Deadline, 2 Apr. 2026

There are 20 arrondissements within Paris, which spiral out like a snail’s shell with one in the center and 20 at the edge. —Eve Chen, USA Today, 2 Apr. 2026

On Saturday morning, Paris police officers spotted two suspects carrying a shopping bag near the premises of the Bank of America in the 8th arrondissement of the French capital. —Sylvie Corbet, Los Angeles Times, 30 Mar. 2026

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from French, "action of making round or rounding off, circumscription of boundaries, extension of a territory, subdivision of a French department," going back to Middle French, "rounding off," from arrondiss-, variant stem of arrondir "to make round, round off" (going back to Old French arondir, from a-, prefix forming transitive verbs — going back to Latin ad- ad- — + -rondir, verbal derivative of reund, rond round entry 1) + -ment -ment

First Known Use

1746, in the meaning defined at sense 2