The joyful experience of reuniting with people from whom one has been separated.
The joyful experience of reuniting with people from whom one has been separated — “reunion,” but with warmer emotional weight.
Unlike the neutral English “reunion” (an event), retrouvailles names the emotionally charged experience of reconnecting after separation — a blend of joy, relief, and satisfied longing — centered on people (family, friends, lovers): “les retrouvailles à l'aéroport.”
“re-findings,” from retrouver “to find again” + the suffix -aille.
From the verb retrouver (“to find again,” re- + trouver “to find”) + the noun-forming suffix -aille; conventionally used in the plural.
A derived noun built on retrouver, whose plural became the conventional way to denote a reunion. No precise first-attestation date located.
Frequently appears on “untranslatable French words” lists, which overstate it — “reunion” covers the core sense; the difference is connotative warmth, not untranslatability.