What does coquet mean?
To coquet is to engage in flirtatious behavior, typically in a light-hearted or teasing way that stops short of genuine romantic commitment. The word entered English in the seventeenth century from French and belongs to the same family as coquette, the noun for a habitual female flirt. While 'flirt' has long since become the everyday term, coquet survives in literary and elevated prose, where it lends a slightly formal or archaic flavor. Beyond romance, writers use it figuratively — one may coquet with danger, coquet with radical ideas, or coquet with financial ruin — meaning to dally with something risky or tempting without fully embracing it. This figurative sense gives the word a versatility that pure synonyms lack, allowing it to describe both amorous coyness and half-serious engagement with any alluring possibility. Its connotation is generally one of insincerity, playfulness, or irresolution.
To flirt playfully or behave in a coy, flirtatious way without serious intent.
"He accused her of coqueting with every man at the ball."
Often used with 'with': to coquet with someone or something.
To trifle or toy with an idea, risk, or possibility rather than commit to it.
"The committee continued to coquet with the proposal before finally rejecting it."
Before 'flirting' caught on in English, people literally said someone was 'playing the cock' — because coquet comes from the French coq, a rooster strutting for his hens.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of coquet
Coquet comes from French coquet, originally an adjective and diminutive formed on coq, meaning 'cock' or 'rooster', evoking the strutting courtship display of the barnyard bird. It passed into English in the early seventeenth century alongside its feminine counterpart, coquette. The underlying image — a bird preening to attract attention without deeper attachment — still colors the word's connotation of playful, noncommittal flirtation.
How coquet is actually used
Coquet is somewhat literary and old-fashioned compared with the more common verb 'flirt'; it often carries a connotation of insincerity or trifling behavior. In figurative use it frequently appears in the phrase 'coquet with' applied to ideas, risks, or policies.
Easily confused with coquet
A coquette is a noun meaning a woman who habitually flirts, while to coquet is the verb describing the act of flirting itself.