bête noire

noun \ ˌbet-ˈnwär , ˌbāt- \

Updated on: 10 Apr 2018

plural bêtes noires play \ˌbet-ˈnwär(z), ˌbāt-\

: a person or thing strongly detested or avoided : bugbear

an idiosyncratic driver whose bête noire was the left turn
—Marylin Bender

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Examples of bête noire in a Sentence

a politician who is the bête noire of liberal groups
doing my own tax return is the bête noire that haunts me every April

Recent Examples of bête noire from the Web

Much as animosity toward President Donald Trump rouses Democrats, Pelosi is a bete noire for Republicans, who’ve long targeted her as the prototype of a San Francisco liberal.

— john mccormick, Bloomberg.com, "Republicans Put Target on Pelosi in Fight to Control Congress," 4 Apr. 2018
Four days after McCarthy's surprise showing, Sen. Robert F. Kennedy of New York - Johnson's bete noire - entered the race for the Democratic nomination.

— the washington post, AL.com, "LBJ left the 1968 presidential race 50 years ago today," 31 Mar. 2018
Anticipating the challenge, Cuomo has been flexing his political muscle and firing warning shots, especially at his bete noire, New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio.

— NBC News, "'Sex and the City' star Cynthia Nixon runs for N.Y. governor, challenging Cuomo," 19 Mar. 2018
The wave of misconduct claims turned the once-ubiquitous producer into the bete noire of Hollywood and prompted many women, and some men, to come forward with their own claims against powerful men in entertainment, media and government.

— kim chatelain, NOLA.com, "Death of Alabama mom, online exhibitionist shocks community: report," 22 Jan. 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'bête noire.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.