rendezvous

1 of 2

noun

ren·​dez·​vous ˈrän-di-ˌvü How to pronounce rendezvous (audio)
-dā-
plural rendezvous ˈrän-di-ˌvüz How to pronounce rendezvous (audio)
-dā-
1
a
: a place appointed for assembling or meeting
b
: a place of popular resort : haunt
2
: a meeting at an appointed place and time
3
: the process of bringing two spacecraft together

rendezvous

2 of 2

verb

ren·​dez·​vous ˈrän-di-ˌvü How to pronounce rendezvous (audio)
-dā-
rendezvoused ˈrän-di-ˌvüd How to pronounce rendezvous (audio)
-dā-
; rendezvousing ˈrän-di-ˌvü-iŋ How to pronounce rendezvous (audio)
-dā-
; rendezvouses ˈrän-di-ˌvüz How to pronounce rendezvous (audio)
-dā-

intransitive verb

: to meet or come together at a particular time and place : come together for a rendezvous

transitive verb

1
: to bring together at a particular time and place : bring together for a rendezvous
2
: to meet at a rendezvous

Examples of rendezvous in a Sentence

Noun But last July's rendezvous between the space shuttle Atlantis and the Russian Mir space station took place in a brand-new climate: the cold war is over, and budgets on both sides of the world are tight. Fred Guterl, Discover, January 1996
The hokeyness and childlike innocence of the scene … were endearing, in a Lost Boys sort of way, and I strolled over to the student-activities center for my rendezvous with my cadet informant thinking that The Citadel's version of martial culture was not so menacing after all. Susan Faludi, New Yorker, 5 Sept. 1994
Although roadside retreats have long been the haunt of individuals seeking discreet settings for an afternoon or evening rendezvous, the adult motel advertises and caters to a specific clientele. William Wyckoff, Geographical Review, July 1992
I was delighted to witness a rendezvous of about 60 cavers, who had come from as far as California, New York and even Switzerland, united in a common purpose. David Roberts, Smithsonian, November 1988
He left the car at Thirteenth Street, and might easily call at this hotel. It is a general rendezvous for visitors to the city. Horatio Alger, The Errand Boy, 1888
He was late for their rendezvous. The restaurant will be our rendezvous. Verb Despite a stuck antenna, the Galileo spacecraft successfully rendezvoused with the asteroid Gaspra last October, coming within 1,000 miles and snapping 150 photos for NASA's scrapbook. Linda Shiner, Air & Space Smithsonian, February/March 1992
Grabbing an extra suit of clothes and leaving the rest of his possessions on board with instructions to rendezvous the next day, he and his companions set off. Ross E. Dunn, The Adventures of Ibn Battuta, 1986
His two ships were separated in the fog, but rendezvoused according to plan in Dusky Bay in southwest New Zealand to pass the southern winter. Daniel J. Boorstin, The Discoverers, 1983
The cousins rendezvoused in New York before they flew to London. we'll rendezvous at the entrance to the park at 6:00 p.m. See More
Recent Examples on the Web
Noun
Lighting up the night sky, a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket streaked into orbit in spectacular fashion Thursday, kicking off a 32-hour rendezvous with the International Space Station to deliver 6,500 pounds of research gear, crew supplies and needed equipment. William Harwood, CBS News, 9 Nov. 2023 In 2030, Lucy will return to Earth for yet another bump that will gear it up for a rendezvous with the Patroclus-Menoetius binary asteroid pair in the trailing Trojan asteroid swarm. Laura Baisas, Popular Science, 2 Nov. 2023 One of the more unexpected choices had to do with the volume of bodily fluids in that initial bathroom rendezvous. Rebecca Rubin, Variety, 11 Oct. 2023 But that didn't stopped her from traveling to Turkey just two months after her first rendezvous with Sarper to spend a week nurturing their connection. Kelly Wynne, Peoplemag, 28 Aug. 2023 With dating rumors reaching a fever pitch, the two singer-songwriters were spotted leaving Electric Lady Studios in New York City early Tuesday morning (May 16), marking the latest in a series of rendezvous that has left fans reeling in recent weeks. Hannah Dailey, Billboard, 16 May 2023 In space, Gemini 7 got within six feet of the crewed Gemini 6, proving that NASA could perform the rendezvous maneuvers needed in lunar missions. Eryn Brown, Washington Post, 9 Nov. 2023 That's a requirement for rendezvous missions with targets moving at more than 17,000 mph. William Harwood, CBS News, 9 Nov. 2023 As daylight broke, the two judges — Carter dressed inconspicuously in a plain sweatshirt and jeans and Gandhi a bit formal for the streets in blue blazer and slacks — led a small procession west from the rendezvous point, Catch 21 Seafood Restaurant at South Central Avenue and 5th Street. Doug Smith, Los Angeles Times, 2 Oct. 2023
Verb
That kind of maneuver had to be perfected in order for a lunar module to descend to the moon from an orbiting command ship and later blast off from the lunar surface, then rendezvous and link up with the mother ship for the trip back to Earth. Richard Goldstein, New York Times, 10 Nov. 2023 Swift, Blake Lively, Ryan Reynolds, and Hugh Jackman rendezvoused at the Oscar winner’s Greenwich Village home, and the singer took the latest look for a test drive. Hannah Jackson, Vogue, 26 Oct. 2023 The European Space Agency plans to launch its Hera spacecraft in October 2024, which will rendezvous with Dimorphos in December 2026 and potentially get a much clearer idea of what happened after the crash. Carlyn Kranking, Smithsonian Magazine, 12 Sep. 2023 Not long after the queen’s visit, the IRA dispatched one of its operatives to rendezvous with gangsters in Boston to create a steady pipeline of weapons to the IRA. Kevin Cullen, BostonGlobe.com, 13 Sep. 2022 Two of the mountain bikers stayed with the hikers, while the other two rode about five miles to the trailhead to rendezvous with emergency personnel and provide the other group’s coordinates, Pascua said. Alex Riggins, Anchorage Daily News, 17 July 2023 It’s been a place to rendezvous with writer-friends such as Amiri Baraka and Ngugi wa Thiong’o, while watching the festival’s reach expand. Anderson Tepper, New York Times, 8 June 2023 The following year, the agency would aim to deliver Orion with astronauts on board to a moon orbit where the vehicle would rendezvous with SpaceX’s Starship lander. Micah Maidenberg, WSJ, 16 Nov. 2022 On July 21, 1969, Apollo 11’s Eagle lunar ascent stage lifted off from the surface of the Moon to rendezvous with the command module Columbia in orbit. The Physics Arxiv Blog, Discover Magazine, 28 July 2021 See More

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'rendezvous.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Noun and Verb

Middle French, from rendez vous present yourselves

First Known Use

Noun

1582, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Verb

1645, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense

Time Traveler
The first known use of rendezvous was in 1582

Dictionary Entries Near rendezvous

Cite this Entry

“Rendezvous.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/rendezvous. Accessed 7 Dec. 2023.

Kids Definition

rendezvous

1 of 2 noun
ren·​dez·​vous ˈrän-di-ˌvü How to pronounce rendezvous (audio)
-dā-
plural rendezvous -ˌvüz How to pronounce rendezvous (audio)
1
a
: a place agreed on for assembling or meeting
b
: a place that many people visit
2
: a planned meeting

rendezvous

2 of 2 verb
rendezvoused
-ˌvüd
; rendezvousing
-ˌvü-iŋ
; rendezvouses
-ˌvüz
: to come or bring together at a rendezvous
Etymology

Noun

early French rendezvous "a place to meet," from the phrase rendez vous "present yourself"

More from Merriam-Webster on rendezvous

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