Favorite French words

I know you have your favorites. We all do. Pass them along to me and I’ll credit you 🙂

clignoter vi	to flash, to blink, to twinkle
grignoter vt	to snack, to nibble
ouistiti nm	marmoset
lacrymogène adj	causing tears
anthropophage adj	cannibalistic
oryctérope nm	aardvark
brouillard nm	fog, mist
gyrophare nm	revolving flashing light (on a vehicle)
azote nm	nitrogen
canicule nf	heat wave
jusqu’au-boutiste nm	extremist
dactylographier vt	to type
magnétophone nm	tape recorder
jalonner vt	to punctuate, to mark
hippocampe nm	sea horse, hippocampus
organigramme nm	organizational chart, flow chart, diagram
rétroviseur nm	rear-view mirror

Adjectives ending in -ace

Petit Larousse illustré (2013)

Here is another set of interesting adjectives that are cool because they’re one syllable shorter than their English translations. To a native English speaker it sounds almost as though they’re missing their last syllable. I find it handy to learn them as a group. For some, the meanings in French and English are not exactly equivalent:

French	English
efficace	efficacious
fugace	fugacious (fleeting)
loquace	loquacious (talkative)
perspicace	perspicacious (insightful)
pugnace	pugnacious (combative)
rapace	rapacious
sagace	sagacious (wise, shrewd)
salace	salacious (indecent)
tenace	tenacious
vorace	voracious

Some “false friends” (faux amis)

Merriam-Webster’s French-English Dictionary (2000)

According to Wikipedia, this term is a shortened form of the expression “false friends of the translator” (faux amis du traducteur): words in two languages which look or sound similar, but differ significantly in meaning. Here is my ever-growing list:

French word	meaning	comment
résumer vt	to summarize	not “to resume”
décevoir vt	to disappoint	not “to deceive”
réaliser vt	to carry out, produce, achieve	not “to realize” in a mental sense
ignorer vt	to be unaware of	not “to ignore”
délivrer vt	to set free, to issue, award, hand over	not “to deliver”
déception nf	disappointment	not “deception”
librairie nf	bookstore	not “library”
éventuel adj	possible	not “eventual”
éventuellement adv	possibly	not “eventually”
actuel adj	current, present	not “actual”
actuellement adv	currently, presently	not “actually”

Adjectives ending in -ique

Petit Larousse illustré (2013)

As a native English speaker, I think French language has lots of adjectives that look like their ends have been cut off. What I mean is in English I would expect an additional syllable, often “-al“. I think they are interesting. Here are just a few:

French	English
physique	physical
logique	logical
théorique	theoretical
pratique	practical
illogique	illogical
technique	technical
filmique	cinematographic
toxicologique	toxicological
énergique	energetic
typique	typical
atypique	atypical
astrologique	astrological
cylindrique	cylindrical
bronchique	bronchial
chimique	chemical
liturgique	liturgical
botanique	botanical
narcissique	narcissistic
synergique	synergistic
écologique	ecological
technologique	technological
canonique	canonical

Noun phrases in which “à” means “with”

Petit Larousse illustré (2013)

In a noun phrase consisting of two words joined by “à”, the word “à” can mean “avec”, or “with”. Here are some examples:

noun phrase	translation
boîte à neige	box(?) with snow (snow globe)
stylo à bille	pen with ball (ballpoint pen)
obligation à haut risque	bond with high risk (junk bond)
drapeau à damier	flag with checkers (checkered flag)
fermeture à glissière	closure with slide (zipper)
échelle à cage	ladder with cage (fire escape)
mètre à ruban	measure with tape (tape measure)
instruments à cordes	instruments with strings
gaz à effet de serre	gas with greenhouse effect
four à microondes	oven with microwaves
cuisinière à gaz	range with gas
carte à puce	card with chip (chip card)

Noun phrases in which “à” means “for”

Petit Larousse illustré (2013)

In a noun phrase consisting of two words joined by “à”, the word “à” can indicate a destination or usage: “for” in English. Here are some examples:

noun phrase	translation
vache à lait	cow for milk
maison à vendre	house for sale
bouilloire à thé	kettle for tea
sac à dos	bag for back (knapsack)
boîte à outils	box for tools
cage à écureuil	cage for squirrel (monkeybars, jungle gym)
canne à pêche	cane for fishing (fishing pole)
carte à jouer	card for playing
carte à gratter	card for scratching (i.e. lottery)
chaise à bascule	chair for rocking
dé à jouer	die for playing (one of a pair of dice)
dé à coudre	die for sewing (thimble)
dépôt à terme	deposit for term (certificate of deposit, time deposit)
pince à linge	pin/clip for laundry (clothespin)
rendezvous à l’aveugle	date for the blind (blind date)
sac à vin	bag for wine (a drunk)
paiement à la séance	payment for the sitting (pay-per-view)
planche à repasser	board for ironing
tasse à thé	cup for tea
gomme à mâcher	gum for chewing
moulin à vent	mill for wind
boîte à lettres	box for letters (mail/post box)
camion à ordures	truck for garbage
corbeille à papier	basket for paper
masque à oxygène	mask for oxygen
savon à barbe	soap for beard (shaving cream)
fer à cheval	iron for horse (horseshoe)
vernis à ongles	laquer/varnish for nails (nail polish)