| vouloir |
| 1. v. to want, wish, desire | |
| Je veux voir le soleil. - I want to see the sun. | |
| Hitler voulait la guerre, mais beaucoup n'en étaient pas conscients. - Hitler wanted war, but many were not aware of it. | |
| 2. v. to see oneself as; to give the impression of, to seem | |
| 3. n-m. will | |
| écrire |
| 1. v. to write | |
| écrire des lettres à ses amis - to write letters to his/her friends | |
| Le |
| 1. Proper noun. surname, from=Vietnamese | |
| 2. art. the (definite article) | |
| Le lait du matin. - The milk of the morning. | |
| 3. art. Used before abstract nouns; not translated in English. | |
| L'amour est aveugle. - Love is blind. | |
| 4. art. (before parts of the body) the; my, your, etc. | |
| Il s’est cassé la jambe. - He has broken his leg. | |
| 5. art. (before units) a, an | |
| Cinquante kilomètres à l’heure. - fifty kilometres an hour | |
| 6. pron. (direct object) him, it | |
| Où est Malik ? Je ne le vois pas. - Where is Malik? I don't see him. | |
| Mon sac ? Je vais le mettre dans la voiture. - My bag? I'm going to put it in the car. | |
| 7. pron. used to refer to something previously mentioned or implied; not translated in English | |
| Je suis petit et lui, il l’est aussi. - ... and he is it too | |
| patois |
| 1. n-m. patois (French dialect) | |
| 2. n-m. patois (any regional dialect) | |
| 3. n-m. (Louisiana French) saying, maxim, proverb, adage | |
| tel |
| 1. adj. such | |
| 2. prep. like, as | |
| Il fond sur elle tel un oiseau de proie. - He swoops down on her like a bird of prey. | |
| 3. prep. such as | |
| Ottawa compte aussi de charmantes tables, tel le Fraser Café. - Ottawa is also home to some enchanting restaurants, such as the Fraser Café. | |
| 4. pron. one (impersonal pronoun) | |
| que |
| 1. conj. that (introduces a subordinate noun clause and connects it to its parent clause) | |
| Je vois que tu parles bien français. - I see that you speak French well. | |
| 2. conj. Substitutes for another, previously stated conjunction. | |
| Si le temps est beau et que tout le monde est d'accord, nous mangerons en plein air. - If the weather is nice and if everyone likes the idea, we'll eat outside. | |
| 3. conj. when, no sooner | |
| Il était à peine parti qu’elle a téléphoné à la police. - No sooner had he left when she called the police. | |
| 4. conj. (Links two noun phrases in apposition forming a clause without a (finite) verb, such that the complement acts as predicate.) | |
| 5. conj. introduces a comparison | |
| 6. conj. (comparisons of superiority or inferiority) than | |
| Il est plus grand que son père. - He is taller than his father. | |
| 7. conj. (comparisons of equality) as | |
| Elle est aussi intelligente que toi. - She is as smart as you. | |
| 8. conj. (used with ne) only, just; but, nothing but | |
| Je ne mange que des fruits. - I eat nothing but fruit. | |
| 9. conj. how (in rhetorical interjections) | |
| Que c'est beau! - How beautiful it is! | |
| Mais que t'es drôle, quoi. - Oh, how funny you are. | |
| 10. pron. (tlb, interrogative) | |
| 11. pron. (slightly formal, accusative) (The inanimate direct-object interrogative pronoun.) | |
| Que pensez-vous de cette peinture ? - What do you think of that painting? | |
| Qu'auriez-vous fait d'autre ? - What else would you have done? | |
| 12. pron. (slightly formal, nominative) (The inanimate subject or predicative interrogative pronoun.) | |
| Qu'est-il arrivé ? - What happened? | |
| Que me vaut cette visite ? - To what do I owe this visit? | |
| Que sommes-nous ? - What are we? | |
| 13. pron. (accusative, relative) (The direct object relative pronoun.) | |
| C'est un homme que je connais très bien. - He's a man whom I know very well. | |
| Je viens de lire la lettre que vous m'avez envoyée. - I've just read the letter that you sent me. | |
| tel que |
| 1. adj. such as, like | |
| une personne telle que vous - A person such as you | |
| Les états paranoïaques, tels que ceux de schizophrénie, peuvent sembler superficiellement similaires mais sont caractéristiquement différents. - States of paranoia, like those of schizophrenia | |
| Contrairement au modèle français, le Président du Conseil ne dispose pas de pouvoir formel, tel que celui de désigner ou renvoyer les autres, ou encore la capacité de dissoudre le Parlement. - | |
| 2. adj. such that | |
| Un continuum est un ensemble d'éléments tels que l'on peut passer de l'un à l'autre de façon continue, sans intervalle discret. - A continuum is a collection of elements such that one may pass | |
| il |
| 1. pron. he (third-person singular masculine subject pronoun for human subject) | |
| Il est parti. - He left. | |
| 2. pron. it (third-person singular subject pronoun for grammatically masculine objects) | |
| Je cherche mon livre. Où est-il ? - I'm looking for my book. Where is it? | |
| 3. pron. (impersonal pronoun) Impersonal subject; it | |
| Il pleut. - It’s raining. | |
| se |
| 1. pron. The third-person reflexive and reciprocal direct and indirect object pronoun. | |
| 2. pron. (to) himself | |
| 3. pron. (to) herself | |
| 4. pron. (to) oneself | |
| 5. pron. (to) itself | |
| 6. pron. (to) themselves | |
| 7. pron. (to) each other | |
| 8. pron. (Louisiana) (The second-person plural reflexive and reciprocal direct and indirect object pronoun.) | |
| Je suis partie à la chasse et faut vous autres se comportes bien. - I'm going hunting and y'all need to behave yourselves. | |
| prononce |
| 1. v. first-person singular present of prononcer | |
| 2. v. third-person singular present of prononcer | |
| 3. v. second-person singular imperative of prononcer | |
| prononcer |
| 1. v. to pronounce | |
| 2. v. to say, mention | |
| 3. v. to give, deliver (a speech) | |
| c'est |
| 1. contraction. it is (used to define the preceding word) | |
| Le temps, c'est de l'argent. - Time is money. | |
| 2. contraction. it is (used to introduce a focus) | |
| 3. contraction. this is | |
| ce |
| 1. det. this, that | |
| 2. pron. (subject of être, with predicative adjectives or relative clauses, singular only) it, this, that (see § Usage notes, below) | |
| C'est beau ! - It is beautiful! | |
| est-ce que...? - is it that...? | |
| ce dont je parlais - that which I was speaking of | |
| C'eût été avec plaisir, mais... - It would have been with pleasure, but... | |
| C'eût été dommage... - It would have been a pity... | |
| 3. pron. (subject of être, with predicate nouns) he, she, it, this, that | |
| C'est un/une célébrité. - He/she is a celebrity. | |
| Ce sont des célébrités. - These are celebrities. | |
| Ce sont des gens bien. - These are good people. | |
| ce semble - it seems | |
| ce peuvent être... - these may be... | |
| est |
| 1. adj. east | |
| 2. n-m. east | |
| 3. v. third-person singular present indicative of être | |
| être |
| 1. v. to be | |
| Vous devez être plus clairs. - You must be clearer. | |
| 2. v. (auxiliary) Used to form the perfect and pluperfect tense of (including all reflexive verbs) | |
| Après être allé au yoga, je suis rentré chez moi. - After having gone to yoga, I came back home. | |
| 3. v. (semi-auxiliary) to be (Used to form the passive voice) | |
| Il peut être battu ce soir. - He can be beaten this evening. | |
| 4. n-m. being, creature | |
| 5. n-m. being, the state or fact of existence | |
| à |
| 1. Notes. In Canada, à and a are not homophones, à a, a ɑː. | |
| 2. prep. to (destination) | |
| aller au bout - go to the end / go all the way | |
| Je vais à Paris. - I am going to Paris. | |
| 3. prep. to (until) | |
| Le spectacle sera de 18h à 21h. - The show will be from 6 pm to 9 pm. | |
| 4. prep. on the, to (some directions) | |
| Tournez à gauche ! - Turn to the left! | |
| Ne tournez pas encore à droite ! - Don't turn to the right yet! | |
| Le vent vire au nord. - The wind turns north. | |
| L'école est à gauche. - The school is on the left. | |
| 5. prep. at (said of a particular time) | |
| à dix heures et quart - at quarter past ten | |
| Je pars à cinq heures précises. - I am leaving at exactly five o'clock. | |
| 6. prep. at, in, on (said of a particular place) | |
| à la maison - at home | |
| à l'hôtel - at the hotel | |
| au comptoir du bar - at the bar | |
| au bois - in the woods | |
| J'habite à un demi-kilomètre d'ici. - I live half a kilometer from here. | |
| La maison qui a été détruite hier soir ne se trouvait qu'à trois kilomètres de chez nous. - The house that was destroyed last night was only three kilometers from our place.à trois kilomètres d | |
| 7. prep. Used in various interjections used as warnings or exhortations | |
| au voleur ! - stop thief! | |
| à l'assassin ! - murderer! | |
| au meurtre ! - murder! murderer! | |
| à moi ! - help! | |
| à l'aide ! - help! | |
| au secours ! - help! | |
| au feu ! - fire! | |
| aux armes ! - to arms! | |
| à l'attaque ! - attack! forward! charge! up and at 'em! | |
| à l'abordage ! - on board! | |
| au boulot ! - get to work! let's get to work! | |
| au travail ! - get to work! let's get to work! | |
| 8. prep. from (origin) | |
| Nous prenons de l'eau au puits. - We get water from the well. | |
| Je l'ai eu à la bibliothèque. - I got it from the library. | |
| Voilà la femme à laquelle j'ai acheté mon chien - There's the woman I bought my dog from. | |
| 9. prep. of (belonging to) | |
| C'est un ami à moi. - This is a friend of mine. | |
| Cette voiture est à John. - This is John's car. | |
| le chien à Marie - Mary's dog nonstandard: one normally would use de here | |
| 10. prep. till, until (used in farewells) | |
| à plus tard - see you later | |
| à bientôt - see you soon | |
| Salut, donc. À demain. - Bye, then. 'Til tomorrow / see you tomorrow. | |
| 11. prep. (cuisine) cooked in or with | |
| 12. prep. Used to make compound nouns to state what something is used for | |
| moulin à poivre - pepper mill | |
| sac à dos - backpack | |
| boite à musique - music box | |
| 13. prep. (before an infinitive) to (used to express something not completed) | |
| l'équipe à battre - the team to beat | |
| Il n'y a jamais grand-chose à faire par ici. - There's never much to do around here. | |
| Là où tu ne vois pas grand-chose, je ne trouve qu'une grande abondance de choses qui restent à faire. - Where you see nothing great, I only see a great abundance of things that need doing. | |
| Il reste deux tâches à finir. - There are two things left to finish. | |
| Il y a de la bière à boire. - There's some beer to drink. | |
| 14. prep. Used to describe a part of something, often translated into English as a compound adjective | |
| un animal à quatre pattes - a four-legged animal | |
| une femme au visage pâle - a pale-faced woman | |
| un homme à longue barbe - a long-bearded man — a man with a long beard | |
| une chemise à manches courtes - a short-sleeved shirt | |
| une maison aux murs de brique - a brick-walled house / a house with brick walls | |
| 15. prep. by | |
| peu à peu - bit by bit | |
| petit à petit - little by little | |
| minute à minute - minute by minute | |
| jour à jour - day by day | |
| un à un - one by one | |
| 16. prep. or, to (used to express an approximate number) | |
| six à sept personnes - six or seven people | |
| de vingt à trente ans - from twenty to thirty years | |
| tous les cinq à six ans - every five or six years | |
| 17. prep. Used to indicate the recipient of certain phrasal verb. | |
| mettre le feu à - to set fire to | |
| clouer le bec à - to shut (someone) up | |
| donner la chasse à - to give chase to | |
| 18. prep. with | |
| être à |
| 1. v. to pertain to; to belong to; to be one's | |
| Ce monde a été à nous, mais maintenant c’est à vous. - This world was ours, but now it’s yours. | |
| dire |
| 1. v. to say, to tell | |
| 2. v. (informal) to be of interest to, to interest +preo, à, someone | |
| Ça te dit de regarder un film de science-fiction? - Do you want to watch a science fiction movie? What do you say to watching a science fiction movie? | |
| Ça vous dit ? - Are you interested in doing this? Are you up for it? | |
| Il m'a demandé si ça nous dirait de nous joindre à eux plus tard. - He asked me if we'd like to join them later. | |
| Ça ne me dit trop rien d'y aller. - I don't really want to go there. | |
| 3. v. (informal) to sound familiar +preo, à, someone | |
| Ça me dit quelque chose. - It rings a bell. | |
| Ça ne me dit rien. - It doesn't ring a bell. | |
| 4. n-m. saying (that which is said) | |
| 5. n-m. belief, opinion | |
| en |
| 1. prep. in (used to indicate space, also see usage notes) | |
| J'habite en Angleterre. - I live in England. | |
| 2. prep. to (indicates direction towards certain very large locations, see usage notes) | |
| Il est allé en France. - He went to France. | |
| 3. prep. by (used to indicate means) | |
| aller en bus - go by bus | |
| partir en voiture - leave by car | |
| 4. prep. as | |
| Il me traite en ami. - He treats me as a friend. | |
| habillé en père Noël - dressed as Father Christmas | |
| 5. prep. at (used to describe an ability) | |
| fort en histoire - good at history | |
| 6. prep. of, made of (used to describe composition) | |
| une chaise en hêtre - a chair made of beech/a beech chair | |
| une fourchette en métal - a fork made of metal/a metal fork | |
| 7. prep. in (during the following time (used for months and years)) | |
| en 1993 - in 1993 | |
| en janvier - in January | |
| en septembre 2001 - in September 2001 | |
| 8. prep. (followed by a gerund) while | |
| 9. prep. (followed by a gerund) by, in describing a way of getting something | |
| C'est en trichant qu'il est devenu champion. - It was by cheating that he became champion. | |
| 10. prep. in (used to describe color) | |
| une photo en noir et blanc - a photo in black and white | |
| 11. prep. in (used to describe feelings) | |
| en détresse - in distress | |
| 12. prep. in (as part of something) | |
| en équipe - on a team | |
| 13. pron. (Used as the object of a verb to indicate an indefinite quantity; of it, of them. Replaces the partitive article (du, de la, etc.)) | |
| Essaies-en ! - Try some (of it / them)! | |
| Tu as combien de livres ? J'en ai trois. - How many books do you have? I have three (of them). | |
| Y a-t-il beaucoup de pièces ? Oui. Il y en a beaucoup. - Are there many rooms? Yes, there are many (of them). | |
| Martin a trois sandwichs, mais j'en ai seulement deux. - Martin has three sandwiches, but I have only two (of them). | |
| Il y en a combien ? - How many of them are there? | |
| Je bois de l'alcool parce que j'en ai besoin - I drink alcohol because I need (of) it. | |
| 14. pron. Adverbial preposition indicating movement away from a place already mentioned; from there, from it. Replaces the phrase de là or d’ici. | |
| Est-ce qu'elle vient de Barcelone ? Oui, elle en vient. - Does she come from Barcelona? Yes, she comes (from there). | |
| retranchant |
| 1. Participle. present participle of retrancher | |
| retrancher |
| 1. v. to deduct, take away, cut out (delete) | |
| 2. v. to cut down | |
| retrancher sur l'alcool - cut down one's alcohol | |
| 3. v. to cut off (exclude, from e.g. society) | |
| 4. v. to take shelter | |
| 5. v. to entrench oneself | |
| toutes |
| 1. adv. feminine plural of tout | |
| 2. det. feminine plural of tout | |
| Mes sœurs sont toutes mariées | |
| My sisters are all married | |
| tout |
| 1. adv. all | |
| 2. det. all | |
| 3. n-m. whole, entirety, total | |
| le tout | |
| 4. pron. everything | |
| les |
| 1. art. plural of le: the | |
| 2. art. plural of la: the | |
| 3. pron. plural of le: them | |
| 4. pron. plural of la: them | |
| lettres |
| 1. n. plural of lettre | |
| 2. n. humanities/arts | |
| lettrer |
| 1. v. to send a letter (to someone) | |
| 2. v. to educate, to teach to read and write | |
| lettre |
| 1. n-f. letter (written character) | |
| 2. n-f. letter (written message) | |
| 3. n-f. (figuratively) the literal meaning, the plain meaning of something | |
| qui |
| 1. pron. (interrogative) who, whom | |
| Tu as vu qui ? - Who have you seen? | |
| Je ne sais pas qui vous êtes. - I don't know who you are. | |
| 2. pron. (relative) who, whom (after a preposition), which, that | |
| La personne qui parle connait bien son sujet. - The person who speaks knows his/her subject well. | |
| Cette voiture bleue qui passe me plait beaucoup. - This blue car which is passing I like a lot. | |
| J’aime les chiens qui sont calmes. - I like dogs that are quiet. | |
| Un homme à qui j’ai parlé. - A man to whom I spoke/have spoken. | |
| Si lugubre que fût l’appartement, c’était un paradis pour qui revenait du lycée. - Gloomy as the apartment was, it was still a paradise for those who came back from school. | |
| Rira bien qui rira le dernier. - Who laughs last laughs well. | |
| 3. conj. (Louisiana French, Cajun French) if | |
| Qui elle en a, ça va faire. - If she has any, that will do. | |
| ne |
| 1. part. (literary) not (used alone to negate a verb; now chiefly with only a few particular verbs: see usage notes) | |
| 2. part. not, no (used before a verb, with a coordinating negative element usually following; see Usage Notes, below) | |
| 3. part. (Used in a subordinate clause before a subjunctive verb (especially when the main verb expresses doubt or fear), to provide extra overtones of doubt or uncertainty (but not negating its verb); the so- | |
| 4. part. In comparative clauses usually translated with the positive sense of the subsequent negative | |
| Apprendre le français est plus facile qu'on ne pense. - Learning French is easier than you (might) think. | |
| se |
| 1. pron. The third-person reflexive and reciprocal direct and indirect object pronoun. | |
| 2. pron. (to) himself | |
| 3. pron. (to) herself | |
| 4. pron. (to) oneself | |
| 5. pron. (to) itself | |
| 6. pron. (to) themselves | |
| 7. pron. (to) each other | |
| 8. pron. (Louisiana) (The second-person plural reflexive and reciprocal direct and indirect object pronoun.) | |
| Je suis partie à la chasse et faut vous autres se comportes bien. - I'm going hunting and y'all need to behave yourselves. | |
| font |
| 1. v. third-person plural present indicative of faire | |
| faire |
| 1. v. to do | |
| faire la vaisselle - to do the washing-up. | |
| Qu'est-ce que tu fais ? - What are you doing? | |
| Fais pas ça. - Don't do that. | |
| 2. v. to make | |
| faire une erreur - to make a mistake. | |
| faire un voyage - to take a trip | |
| 3. v. to say (of a person), to go (of an animal) | |
| "Je t'aime," fit-il. - "I love you," he said. | |
| Le chat fait "miaou". - The cat goes "meow". | |
| 4. v. to make (cause someone or something to do something) | |
| Tu me fais rire. - You make me laugh. | |
| La chanson me fait pleurer. - The song makes me cry. | |
| 5. v. to act like (something) | |
| Fais pas ton innocent avec moi. - Don't act like you're so innocent around me./Don't give me that innocent act. | |
| 6. v. (impersonal) to be (of the weather or various situations) | |
| Il fait chaud/froid/noir/beau dehors. - It is hot/cold/dark/nice outside. | |
| Ça fait dix ans que nous nous connaissons. - We have known each other for ten years. | |
| Ça fait bizarre. - That seems/looks bizarre; that gives a bizarre effect/appearance/result. | |
| Ça fait très monsieur, ta cravate. - Your tie makes you look like a real gentleman. | |
| 7. v. to do, to make (oneself) | |
| Elle se fait les ongles. - She is doing her nails. | |
| 8. v. to be, to get (used for a passive action) | |
| se faire piquer - to be stung | |
| Je me suis fait avoir. - I got screwed. | |
| Est-ce que tu t'es fait couper les cheveux ? - Did you get your hair cut? | |
| 9. v. to ripen (of fruit), to mature | |
| 10. v. to become used to, to get used to | |
| Je ne m'y suis toujours pas fait. - I still haven't got used to it. | |
| 11. v. (slang) to do (to have sex with) | |
| 12. v. (informal, intransitive) to defecate; (metaphorically) to shit oneself (to be terrified) | |
| L'enfant a fait dans son pantalon. - The child soiled his trousers. | |
| Ils viennent d'entendre les nouvelles et ils font dans leur culotte. - They've just heard the news and they're shitting themselves. | |
| 13. v. to become, to get | |
| point |
| 1. n-m. point (small mark) | |
| 2. n-m. (sports) point | |
| 3. n-m. full stop, period (punctuation mark) | |
| 4. n-m. (knitting) stitch pattern | |
| 5. n-m. dot (Morse code symbol) | |
| 6. adv. (literary, dialectal, usually with "ne") not | |
| Ne craignez point - Fear not | |
| 7. Participle. past participle of poindre | |
| 8. v. third-person singular present indicative of poindre | |
| poindre |
| 1. v. to prick, sting | |
| 2. v. to sting, afflict (of pain, love etc.) | |
| 3. v. to come up (of a plant), peep through | |
| 4. v. to break, dawn (of day); to break (of dawn) | |
| 5. v. to appear, spring up | |
| sentir |
| 1. v. to smell (to have a certain odor) | |
| Ça sent bon. - It smells good. | |
| 2. v. to taste | |
| 3. v. to feel (physical perception) | |
| 4. v. to smell of, taste of | |
| Ce repas sent l’ail. - This meal smells/tastes of garlic. | |
| 5. v. to smack of; to indicate, foreshadow | |
| Ça sent la pluie. - It looks like rain. | |
| 6. v. to have the character, manner, feeling or appearance of; to give a feeling of | |
| 7. v. to feel, be aware of, be conscious of | |
| 8. v. to feel (in oneself) | |
| 9. v. to show, be felt (of effect, improvement etc.) | |
| cela |
| 1. pron. that | |
| 2. v. third-person singular past historic of celer | |
| est |
| 1. adj. east | |
| 2. n-m. east | |
| 3. v. third-person singular present indicative of être | |
| être |
| 1. v. to be | |
| Vous devez être plus clairs. - You must be clearer. | |
| 2. v. (auxiliary) Used to form the perfect and pluperfect tense of (including all reflexive verbs) | |
| Après être allé au yoga, je suis rentré chez moi. - After having gone to yoga, I came back home. | |
| 3. v. (semi-auxiliary) to be (Used to form the passive voice) | |
| Il peut être battu ce soir. - He can be beaten this evening. | |
| 4. n-m. being, creature | |
| 5. n-m. being, the state or fact of existence | |
| bon |
| 1. adj. good | |
| (parasyn, bien) | |
| 2. adj. right, correct, appropriate | |
| (parasyn, exact) | |
| le bon usage - the correct usage | |
| être dans la bonne direction - to be going the right way, to be heading the right way | |
| Choisissez la bonne réponse. - Choose the correct response. | |
| 3. adj. (slang) sexy, hot, smoking hot | |
| Cette meuf est fin bonne ! - That chick is fine as hell! | |
| 4. n-m. voucher, ticket, coupon | |
| 5. interj. well; OK | |
| pour |
| 1. prep. for (meant for, intended for) (followed by a noun or pronoun) | |
| J'ai un cadeau pour toi. - I've got a gift for you. | |
| 2. prep. for (in support of) | |
| Pourquoi voter pour lui ? - Why did you vote for him? | |
| 3. prep. for (as a consequence for) | |
| Il faut le punir pour ses crimes. - He must be punished for his crimes. | |
| 4. prep. for (an intended destination) | |
| Sébastien est parti pour Londres. - Sébastien left for London. | |
| 5. prep. to (to bring about an intended result) (followed by a verb in the infinitive) | |
| Je veux chanter pour te faire revenir. - I want to sing to make you come back. | |
| 6. prep. for, to (according to) | |
| Pour moi, ce film est trop irréaliste. - For me, this film is too unrealistic. | |
| une |
| 1. num. feminine singular of un | |
| 2. art. a / an (feminine indefinite article) | |
| 3. n-f. front page (of a publication) | |
| langue |
| 1. n-f. (anatomy) tongue | |
| la langue dans la bouche - the tongue in the mouth | |
| 2. n-f. (linguistics) language (system of communication using written or spoken words) | |
| la langue maternelle - the mother tongue, native language | |
| une langue étrangère - a foreign language | |
| Elle parle trois langues. - She speaks three languages. | |
| faire parler la langue française - to make speak the French language — Bertrand Barère | |
| de |
| 1. prep. of (expresses belonging) | |
| Paris est la capitale de la France. - Paris is the capital of France. | |
| 2. prep. of (used to express property or association) | |
| Œuvres de Fermat - Fermat’s Works | |
| Elle est la femme de mon ami. - She is my friend’s wife. | |
| le voisin de Gabriel - Gabriel's neighbor | |
| 3. prep. from (used to indicate origin) | |
| Elle vient de France. - She comes from France. | |
| Êtes-vous de Suisse ? - Are you from Switzerland? | |
| Ce fromage vient d’Espagne. - This cheese is from Spain. | |
| C’est de l’ouest de la France. - It’s from the west of France. | |
| Le train va de Paris à Bordeaux. - The train goes from Paris to Bordeaux. | |
| 4. prep. of (indicates an amount) | |
| 5 kilos de pommes. - 5 kilograms of apples. | |
| Un verre de vin - A glass of wine | |
| Une portion de frites - A portion of fries | |
| 5. prep. used attributively, often translated into English as a compound word | |
| Un jus de pomme - Apple juice | |
| Un verre de vin - A glass of wine | |
| Une boîte de nuit - A nightclub | |
| Un chien de garde - A guarddog | |
| Une voiture de sport - A sportscar | |
| Un stade de football - A football stadium | |
| 6. prep. from (used to indicate the start of a time or range) | |
| De 9:00 à 11:00 je ne serai pas libre. - From 9 to 11 I won’t be free. | |
| Je travaille de huit heures à midi. - I work from 8 o'clock to noon. | |
| un groupe de cinq à huit personnes - a group of from five to eight people | |
| 7. prep. used after certain verbs before an infinitive, often translated into English as a gerund or an infinitive | |
| J’ai arrêté de fumer. - I stopped smoking. | |
| Il continue de m’embêter. - He keeps annoying me. | |
| Elle m’a dit de venir. - She told me to come. | |
| Nous vous exhortons de venir. - We urge you to come. | |
| 8. prep. by (indicates the amount of change) | |
| Boire trois tasses par jour réduirait de 20 % les risques de contracter une maladie. - Drinking three cups a day would reduce the risks of catching an illness by 20%. | |
| 9. art. Used in the plural with prepositioned adjectives. | |
| Ce sont de bons enfants. - They are good children. | |
| Il y a d’autres exemples. - There are other examples. | |
| 10. art. Used in negated sentences with the grammatical object. | |
| Elle n’a pas de mère. - She doesn’t have a mother. | |
| Il ne mange pas de viande. - He doesn’t eat meat. | |
| Il n’y a pas de problèmes. - There are no problems. | |
| 11. n-f. abbreviation of dame | |
| sauvage |
| 1. adj. wild, untamed, not domesticated | |
| 2. adj. coarse, unrefined | |
| 3. adj. uncontained, anarchic | |
| la publicité sauvage - unregulated/unrestrained/excessive advertising | |
| 4. adj. (of a person) living in an eccentric, isolated way, not interested in social contact or appealing to others | |
| 5. adj. (especially, Canada, obsolete, offensive) Louisiana French, offensive Amerindian | |
| 6. n-m. (especially, Canada, obsolete, offensive, Louisiana) Amerindian | |
| 7. n-m. (Louisiana) an Amerindian language | |
| qui |
| 1. pron. (interrogative) who, whom | |
| Tu as vu qui ? - Who have you seen? | |
| Je ne sais pas qui vous êtes. - I don't know who you are. | |
| 2. pron. (relative) who, whom (after a preposition), which, that | |
| La personne qui parle connait bien son sujet. - The person who speaks knows his/her subject well. | |
| Cette voiture bleue qui passe me plait beaucoup. - This blue car which is passing I like a lot. | |
| J’aime les chiens qui sont calmes. - I like dogs that are quiet. | |
| Un homme à qui j’ai parlé. - A man to whom I spoke/have spoken. | |
| Si lugubre que fût l’appartement, c’était un paradis pour qui revenait du lycée. - Gloomy as the apartment was, it was still a paradise for those who came back from school. | |
| Rira bien qui rira le dernier. - Who laughs last laughs well. | |
| 3. conj. (Louisiana French, Cajun French) if | |
| Qui elle en a, ça va faire. - If she has any, that will do. | |
| ne |
| 1. part. (literary) not (used alone to negate a verb; now chiefly with only a few particular verbs: see usage notes) | |
| 2. part. not, no (used before a verb, with a coordinating negative element usually following; see Usage Notes, below) | |
| 3. part. (Used in a subordinate clause before a subjunctive verb (especially when the main verb expresses doubt or fear), to provide extra overtones of doubt or uncertainty (but not negating its verb); the so- | |
| 4. part. In comparative clauses usually translated with the positive sense of the subsequent negative | |
| Apprendre le français est plus facile qu'on ne pense. - Learning French is easier than you (might) think. | |
| a |
| 1. n. a, the name of the Latin-script letter A | |
| 2. pron. (Quebec, colloquial) alt form-lite, elle, , she | |
| C'te fille-là, a'a l'air cute. - This girl, she looks cute. | |
| 3. v. third-person singular present indicative of avoir | |
| Elle a un chat. - She has a cat. | |
| avoir |
| 1. n-m. asset, possession | |
| 2. v. to have (to own; to possess) | |
| J'aimerais avoir 20 dollars. - I would like to have 20 dollars. | |
| 3. v. (auxiliary) to have (auxiliary verb to form compound past tenses of most verbs) | |
| J'ai parlé. - I have spoken, I spoke. | |
| Qu'est-ce que vous m'avez fait ? - What have you done to me? | |
| 4. v. to have (a condition) | |
| J'ai faim. - I have hunger. | |
| J'ai soif. - I have thirst. | |
| J'ai froid. - I have cold. | |
| J'ai chaud. - I have hot. | |
| J'ai la chiasse. - I have the shits. | |
| J'ai le rhume. - I have a cold. | |
| J'ai le SIDA. - I have AIDS. | |
| J'ai de la fièvre. - I've got a fever. | |
| 5. v. to have (a measure or age) | |
| Elle a 19 ans. - She has 19 years. | |
| 6. v. to have (to trick) | |
| Tu t'es fait avoir. - You've been had. | |
| 7. v. to have (to participate in an experience) | |
| avoir des relations sexuelles - to have sexual relations | |
| 8. v. (indtr, à) to have (to), must +preo, à, infinitive | |
| J'ai à vous parler. - I have to talk to you. | |
| ni |
| 1. conj. neither; nor | |
| 2. conj. , t=(...) accidental or intercurrent constitutions are neither less important nor easier to explain. | |
| passé |
| 1. n-m. past tense | |
| 2. n-m. past (opposite of future) | |
| 3. adj. past | |
| 4. adj. (used with certain temporal nouns) last | |
| la semaine passée ; l'année passée, l’an passé ; l'hiver passé - last week; last year; last winter | |
| 5. Participle. past participle of passer | |
| passer |
| 1. v. to go past | |
| 2. v. to cross (a border) | |
| 3. v. (legal) to pass | |
| passer une loi - to pass a law | |
| 4. v. to spend (time) | |
| J'ai passé les vacances en Espagne. - I spent the holidays in Spain. | |
| J'ai passé une splendide soirée chez toi. - I had a great evening at your place. | |
| 5. v. to publish (a newspaper) | |
| 6. v. to take, to sit (an exam or test) | |
| J'ai réussi l'examen que j'avais passé en avril. - I passed the exam that I took in April. | |
| 7. v. to pass (an exam or test) | |
| Il est passé à l'examen. - He passed the exam. | |
| 8. v. (dated) to pass (an exam or test) | |
| Il a passé l'examen. - He passed the exam. | |
| 9. v. (public transportation) to run | |
| Le train passe toutes les vingt minutes. - The train runs every 20 minutes. | |
| 10. v. to exceed (a limit) | |
| 11. v. to percolate | |
| 12. v. to hand down, to pass on | |
| 13. v. to be allowed | |
| 14. v. to pass, to go (between two entities) | |
| 15. v. to show (a movie) | |
| 16. v. to go up (a grade) | |
| 17. v. to shift (change gear) | |
| 18. v. to go down | |
| 19. v. to go up | |
| 20. v. to stop by, to pop in | |
| Il est passé nous voir. - He stopped by to see us. | |
| Je vais y passer demain pour mes affaires. - I'm going to stop by there tomorrow for my things. | |
| 21. v. to pass away, to die | |
| 22. v. (music) to spin (e.g. a disk) | |
| 23. v. (TV) to show (be on television) | |
| 24. v. (sports) to pass (kick, throw, hit etc. the ball to another player) | |
| 25. v. (athletics) to pass (the relay baton) | |
| 26. v. to pass on (infect someone else with a disease) | |
| 27. v. to put, to place, to slip (move a part of one's body somewhere else) | |
| 28. v. to wipe, rub | |
| Elle passe de la crème sur son ventre. - She's rubbing cream on her belly. | |
| 29. v. to skip a go | |
| 30. v. to put (make something undergo something) | |
| 31. v. (card games) to pass (not play upon one's turn) | |
| 32. v. to take place, to happen, to come to pass | |
| Qu'est-ce qui s'est passé ici ? - What happened here? | |
| 33. v. to go by | |
| 34. v. to do without | |
| Je ne peux pas me passer du café le matin. - I can't do without a cup of coffee in the morning. | |
| 35. v. to don | |
| Il passa son pantalon. - He put on his pants. | |
| 36. v. (indtr, pour) to be thought to be, to be said to be, to be taken for | |
| faire passer quelqu'un pour quelque chose - to make someone out to be something | |
| se faire passer pour - to pass oneself off as, to pose as, to impersonate | |
| ni |
| 1. conj. neither; nor | |
| 2. conj. , t=(...) accidental or intercurrent constitutions are neither less important nor easier to explain. | |
| tradition |
| 1. n-f. tradition | |
| 2. n-f. a type of baguette or French stick | |
| aucune |
| 1. det. feminine singular of aucun | |
| Il n'a aucune raison de se retirer. - He has no reason to pull out. | |
| 2. pron. feminine singular of aucun | |
| aucun |
| 1. det. (with ne) no, none, not any | |
| Il n'a aucun désir de construire des temples. - He has no desire to build temples. | |
| 2. pron. (with ne) none, no-one | |
| Aucun d'entre eux n'a été capable de répondre. - No one among them could give an answer. | |
| Aucun de ses amis ne sait où il est. - None of his friends knows where he is. | |
