ballon d'essai
[b
a
-law
n
de-
se
]
/ba lɔ̃ dɛˈsɛ/
noun
,
plural
ballons d'essai
[b
a
-law
n
de-
se
]
/ba lɔ̃ dɛˈsɛ/
(
Show IPA
).
French.
1.
trial balloon
(def 1).
British Dictionary definitions for
ballon d'essai
ballon d'essai
/
bæˈlõ dɛˈseɪ
/
noun
(
pl
)
ballons d'essai
(
bæˈlõ dɛˈseɪ
)
1.
a project or policy put forward experimentally to gauge reactions to it
Compare
trial balloon
Word Origin
C19: from French, literally: trial balloon