raconteur

noun

ra·​con·​teur ˌra-ˌkän-ˈtər 

-kən-

: a person who excels in telling anecdotes

Did you know?

Raconteur Has Old French Roots

If you’re a sage of sagas, a bard of ballads, or a pro in prose, you may have lost count of the accounts you’ve recounted. Some might call you a recounter, but as a master of narrative form you may find that recounter lacks a certain je ne sais quoi. Sure, it has a cool story—it traces back to the Latin verb computere, meaning “to count”—but so do many words: compute and computer, count and account, and neither last nor least, raconteur, a singsong title better fit for a whimsical storyteller. English speakers borrowed raconteur from French in the early 19th century.

Examples of raconteur in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The museum, which was designed by the Australian architecture firm Fender Katsalidis, was founded by Australian multimillionaire and professional gambler David Walsh, a raconteur with an eccentric perspective on museum programming. — News Desk, Artforum, 10 July 2026

There are no kitchen workers scouring pots or raconteurs drinking rum punch; most of the figures seem utterly incapable of offering directions or telling a joke, much less running, sweating, or allowing blood to flow through their veins. — Zachary Fine, New Yorker, 8 June 2026

The frontman razzle and rock ‘n’ roll raconteur remain. — Jed Gottlieb, Boston Herald, 25 May 2026

Writer, wit, and raconteur, Fran Lebowitz aspired to the literary life at a young age. — René Ostberg, Encyclopedia Britannica, 7 May 2026

Word History

Etymology

French, from Middle French, from raconter to tell, from Old French, from re- + aconter, acompter to tell, count — more at account

First Known Use

1819, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for raconteur

• amour
• grandeur
• hauteur
• velour
• voyeur
• doer
• poor
• poore

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