coquettish

The word 'coquettish' has a distinctly French flair, entering English in the early 18th century. Its core, 'coquet', is a playful diminutive of the French word for rooster ('coq'), evoking the bird's proud, attention-seeking strut. This avian metaphor was applied to people, particularly men (a 'coquet' was a dandy), to describe vain, flirtatious behaviour. The English suffix '-ish' (here as '-tish') was then added to form the adjective, shifting the primary association to describe a woman's teasing, alluring, and provocatively playful manner.

Structure: coquet (to flirt) + tish (adjective suffix) - coquet: From French 'coqueter' (to flirt, to act like a flirt), itself from 'coquet' (a flirt, a dandy), a diminutive of 'coq' (rooster). The sense is of strutting or showing off like a rooster. - tish: A variant of the English adjectival suffix '-ish', meaning "having the qualities of" or "inclined to".