banyuls
|ba-nyuls|
/bəˈnjuːlz/
sweet fortified wine; place name in southern France
Etymology
'Banyuls' originates from Catalan/Occitan, specifically from a local form related to Catalan 'bany' (from Latin 'balneum'), where 'bany' meant 'bath' or 'a place for bathing'.
'Banyuls' changed from Latin 'balneum' (meaning 'bath') into Vulgar Latin/Occitan forms and Catalan 'bany', which was then used as a place-name (Banyuls) and later as the name for the wine produced there.
Initially it referred to 'a bath' or 'a place of bathing'; over time it became a place-name for the commune and then the name of the local fortified wine, so its modern English uses denote the town and the wine.
Meanings by Part of Speech
Noun 1
a sweet, fortified dessert wine produced in the Banyuls region (Roussillon) of southern France; often made from Grenache grapes and labelled simply 'Banyuls'.
They served a glass of Banyuls with the chocolate dessert.
Synonyms
Noun 2
short form or reference to Banyuls-sur-Mer, a coastal commune in the Pyrénées-Orientales department in southern France.
Banyuls is a small town on the Mediterranean near the Spanish border.
Synonyms
Last updated: 2026/01/11 18:54