Well-read · Books & writing · Borrowed words
Bildungsroman: meaning, pronunciation and examples
Bildungsroman noun. A novel that follows a young person's growth from childhood to maturity and their education in life.
How to say it
BIL-doongz-roh-mahn/ˈbɪldʊŋzrəʊˌmɑːn/
4 syllables, stressed on the first (BIL). Forms: bildungsromans, Bildungsroman.
Bildungsroman in a sentence
Great Expectations is a classic bildungsroman, tracing Pip from the marshes to London and back.
The film is a summer bildungsroman about a girl learning to sail and to say no.
Similar and opposite
Similar:
- coming-of-age novel
- novel of formation
Where bildungsroman comes from
From German, from Bildung, education or formation, and Roman, novel.
Test yourself
Which word fills the gap?
The film is a summer _____ about a girl learning to sail and to say no.
- oeuvre
- bildungsroman
- neologism
Show the answer
bildungsroman: The film is a summer bildungsroman about a girl learning to sail and to say no.