raconteur
noun
ra·con·teur ˌra-ˌkän-ˈtər 
-kən-
: a person who excels in telling anecdotes
Did you know?
Raconteur Has Old French Roots
The story of raconteur is a tale of telling and counting. English speakers borrowed the word from French, where it traces back to the Old French verb raconter, meaning "to tell." Raconter in turn was formed from another Old French verb, aconter or acompter, meaning "to tell" or "to count," which is ultimately from Latin computare, meaning "to count." Computare is also the source of our words count and account. Raconteur has been part of the English vocabulary since at least 1828.
Example Sentences
Recent Examples on the Web Beginning in childhood, my mother became my history teacher and intellectual raconteur. 
Peniel E. Joseph, CNN, 6 Sep. 2022 He also became known as a one-of-a-kind character and raconteur. New York Times, 29 May 2022 That’s my great teacher Bobby Lewis, who was a member of the Group Theatre in the ’30s and was a magnificent, funny, great raconteur. Thr Staff, The Hollywood Reporter, 4 Aug. 2022 Over the course of 10 rootsy rock & roll songs, the music, words and singing wink, groove and raconteur. Matt Wake | Mwake@al.com, al, 7 July 2022 Some nights, guests might find locals and visitors gathered in the space for A to B, a vinyl listening session that invites a local or famous musician to play the A and B sides of a record and act as raconteur between sides or songs. Noah Lederman, SPIN, 27 June 2022 This very special-episode-like installment of UnCabaret ended with resident closer Jamie Bridgers, a very funny raconteur who happens to be the mother of indie rock darling Phoebe Bridgers. Los Angeles Times, 27 June 2022 From its founding over 20 years ago, saxophonist extraordinaire and local musical raconteur Norman Tischler was the director of the Workmen’s Circle Klezmer Orchestra. Sam Boyer, cleveland, 3 June 2022 Their most powerful cudgel was Thompson’s catty barroom raconteur Buddy Cole, a trash-talking one-man pride revolution in an ascot. New York Times, 24 May 2022 See More
Peniel E. Joseph, CNN, 6 Sep. 2022 He also became known as a one-of-a-kind character and raconteur. New York Times, 29 May 2022 That’s my great teacher Bobby Lewis, who was a member of the Group Theatre in the ’30s and was a magnificent, funny, great raconteur. Thr Staff, The Hollywood Reporter, 4 Aug. 2022 Over the course of 10 rootsy rock & roll songs, the music, words and singing wink, groove and raconteur. Matt Wake | Mwake@al.com, al, 7 July 2022 Some nights, guests might find locals and visitors gathered in the space for A to B, a vinyl listening session that invites a local or famous musician to play the A and B sides of a record and act as raconteur between sides or songs. Noah Lederman, SPIN, 27 June 2022 This very special-episode-like installment of UnCabaret ended with resident closer Jamie Bridgers, a very funny raconteur who happens to be the mother of indie rock darling Phoebe Bridgers. Los Angeles Times, 27 June 2022 From its founding over 20 years ago, saxophonist extraordinaire and local musical raconteur Norman Tischler was the director of the Workmen’s Circle Klezmer Orchestra. Sam Boyer, cleveland, 3 June 2022 Their most powerful cudgel was Thompson’s catty barroom raconteur Buddy Cole, a trash-talking one-man pride revolution in an ascot. New York Times, 24 May 2022 See More Word History
Etymology
French, from Middle French, from raconter to tell, from Old French, from re- + aconter, acompter to tell, count — more at account
First Known Use
1828, in the meaning defined above