session [sesjɔ̃]

session (noun [f]: meeting or period) ●

• La prochaine session de formation aura lieu le mois prochain. (The next training session will take place next month.)

entamer [ɑ̃tame]

start on, open, begin, start, make a start on (transitive verb: to begin consuming) ●

• Nous allons entamer cette nouvelle bouteille de champagne pour célébrer. (We’re going to open this new bottle of champagne to celebrate.)

start, initiate, open, bring, institute (transitive verb: to begin or start) ●

• L’entreprise a entamé des négociations avec ses concurrents. (The company has started negotiations with its competitors.)

dip into, make a dent in, make a hole in (transitive verb: to diminish, reduce) ●

• Ces vacances ont entamé notre budget annuel de manière significative. (This vacation made a dent in our annual budget significantly.)

cut into, nick (transitive verb: to cut, damage) ●

• Le couteau a entamé la surface du meuble en bois. (The knife nicked the surface of the wooden furniture.)

begin, start, embark upon (transitive verb: to begin spending time) ●

• Elle entame sa troisième année d’études universitaires ce mois-ci. (She is beginning her third year of university studies this month.)

dent, shake (transitive verb: to degrade, weaken) ●

• Les critiques répétées ont fini par entamer sa détermination. (The repeated criticisms finally shook his determination.)

shake, rattle (transitive verb: to cause to doubt) ●

• Ces révélations ont entamé la confiance du public envers le gouvernement. (These revelations shook the public’s confidence in the government.)

ménage [menaʒ]

housework, cleaning (noun [m]: domestic tasks) ●

• Elle fait le ménage tous les samedis matin. (She does the housework every Saturday morning.)

couple, family, household (noun [m]: couple living together) ●

• Ce jeune ménage vient d’emménager dans le quartier. (This young couple has just moved into the neighborhood.)

household (noun [m]: sociology term for person or persons in a home) ●

• L’enquête a été menée auprès de deux mille ménages français. (The survey was conducted among two thousand French households.)

household (noun [m]: domestic affairs) ●

• Elle sait parfaitement tenir son ménage malgré son emploi du temps chargé. (She knows perfectly well how to run her household despite her busy schedule.)

purement [pyʁmɑ̃]

purely (adverb: exclusively) ●

• Cette décision est purement économique, sans aucune considération sociale. (This decision is purely economic, with no social consideration.)

simply (adverb: exactly) ●

• Il a purement refusé de discuter de cette affaire. (He simply refused to discuss this matter.)

enjeu [ɑ̃ʒø]

what they’re playing for, what’s at stake, prize, stakes (noun [m]: what can be won or lost) ●

• L’enjeu du tournoi est une somme de cent mille euros. (What’s at stake in the tournament is a sum of one hundred thousand euros.)

issue, concern (noun [m]: subject, question, challenge) ●

• Le changement climatique représente un enjeu majeur pour notre génération. (Climate change represents a major issue for our generation.)

passager [pasaʒe]

passenger (noun [m]: traveler) ●

• Les passagers du vol 402 sont priés de se présenter à la porte d’embarquement. (Passengers on flight 402 are asked to proceed to the boarding gate.)

temporary, brief, short-lived, passing (adjective: momentary, temporary) ●

• Cette crise n’est que passagère, la situation s’améliorera bientôt. (This crisis is only temporary; the situation will improve soon.)

transformation [tʁɑ̃sfɔʁmasjɔ̃]

transformation (noun [f]: change) ●

• La transformation numérique a changé notre façon de travailler. (The digital transformation has changed the way we work.)

conversion (noun [f]: Rugby, extra points for a try) ●

• Le joueur a marqué l’essai et réussi la transformation difficile. (The player scored the try and made the difficult conversion.)

calculer [kalkyle]

calculate, add up, work out, figure out, compute (transitive verb: perform a calculation) ●

• Peux-tu calculer le montant total de nos dépenses mensuelles ? (Can you calculate the total amount of our monthly expenses?)

weigh up, reckon (transitive verb: evaluate) ●

• Il faut calculer les risques avant de prendre une telle décision. (You have to weigh up the risks before making such a decision.)

look right through, cut, cut dead (transitive verb: slang, ignore someone) ●

• Elle m’a croisé dans la rue mais elle ne m’a même pas calculé. (She passed me in the street but didn’t even acknowledge me.)

misère [mizɛʁ]

poverty, impoverishment, penury, destitution (noun [f]: poverty) ●

• La misère dans certains quartiers de la ville est préoccupante. (The poverty in certain neighborhoods of the city is worrying.)

miseries, misfortunes, troubles, woes (noun [f] pl: problems) ●

• Il nous a raconté toutes ses misères pendant deux heures. (He told us about all his woes for two hours.)

impoverishment, poverty (noun [f]: figurative, smallness, intellectual poverty) ●

• La misère culturelle de cette région est due au manque d’investissements. (The cultural impoverishment of this region is due to lack of investment.)

légèrement [leʒɛʁmɑ̃]

lightly, gently, softly (adverb: in a gentle way) ●

• Elle a légèrement touché mon épaule pour attirer mon attention. (She lightly touched my shoulder to get my attention.)

lightly (adverb: in a light manner) ●

• En été, il faut s’habiller légèrement pour supporter la chaleur. (In summer, you have to dress lightly to bear the heat.)

slightly, a little (adverb: degree, a bit) ●

• Le prix a légèrement augmenté depuis le mois dernier. (The price has slightly increased since last month.)

lightly, carelessly, casually (adverb: without consideration) ●

• Il a légèrement oublié de mentionner les détails importants. (He casually forgot to mention the important details.)

écraser [ekʁaze]

press, flatten (transitive verb: flatten) ●

• La machine écrase les canettes pour faciliter le recyclage. (The machine flattens cans to make recycling easier.)

mash, crush (transitive verb: grind, food) ●

• N’oublie pas d’écraser l’ail avant de l’ajouter à la sauce. (Don’t forget to crush the garlic before adding it to the sauce.)

crush, squeeze, squash (transitive verb: compress) ●

• Attention à ne pas écraser les fruits dans ton sac. (Be careful not to crush the fruit in your bag.)

stand on, step on, tread on, crush, squash (transitive verb: hurt with foot) ●

• Excuse-moi, je t’ai écrasé le pied par accident ! (Sorry, I stepped on your foot by accident!)

swat, squash (transitive verb: kill by flattening) ●

• J’ai écrasé une araignée dans la salle de bain. (I squashed a spider in the bathroom.)

run over (transitive verb: kill by hitting with vehicle) ●

• Le conducteur a failli écraser un chat sur la route. (The driver nearly ran over a cat on the road.)

stub out (transitive verb: extinguish cigarette) ●

• Il a écrasé sa cigarette dans le cendrier avant d’entrer. (He stubbed out his cigarette in the ashtray before going in.)

overwrite (transitive verb: computing, erase data) ●

• Le nouveau fichier a écrasé l’ancienne version par erreur. (The new file overwrote the old version by mistake.)

crush, squash (transitive verb: press hard on) ●

• Le poids de la neige risque d’écraser le toit de la cabane. (The weight of the snow could crush the cabin’s roof.)

crush, weigh down, overburden (transitive verb: figurative, overwhelm) ●

• Les citoyens sont écrasés par la hausse constante des impôts. (Citizens are crushed by the constant increase in taxes.)

be overpowering, beat down (transitive verb: figurative, physically overwhelm) ●

• La chaleur du désert écrase les voyageurs non préparés. (The desert heat overpowers unprepared travelers.)

crush (transitive verb: figurative, informal, defeat someone) ●

• Notre équipe a écrasé l’adversaire avec un score de cinq à zéro. (Our team crushed the opponent with a score of five to zero.)

blow out of the water, quash, squash, make mincemeat of (transitive verb: figurative, dominate) ●

• Son talent exceptionnel écrase la concurrence. (Her exceptional talent blows the competition out of the water.)

crash (reflexive verb: fall) ●

• L’hélicoptère s’est écrasé dans la montagne à cause du brouillard. (The helicopter crashed in the mountains because of the fog.)

shut up (reflexive verb: informal, be quiet) ●

• Écrase-toi un peu, on essaie de travailler ici ! (Shut up a bit, we’re trying to work here!)

be crushed (reflexive verb: be massed together) ●

• Les fans se sont écrasés contre les barrières pour voir la star. (The fans were crushed against the barriers to see the star.)

enrichir [ɑ̃ʁiʃiʁ]

make rich, enrich, increase the wealth of, boost the economy of (transitive verb: make wealthy) ●

• Les exportations de pétrole ont enrichi le pays en quelques décennies. (Oil exports have made the country rich in a few decades.)

enrich, enhance, broaden, expand, improve (transitive verb: increase, augment) ●

• La lecture de romans classiques enrichit considérablement le vocabulaire. (Reading classical novels considerably enriches vocabulary.)

make your money, get rich, become rich, grow rich, become wealthy, grow wealthy (reflexive verb: make fortune) ●

• Il s’est enrichi en investissant dans l’immobilier au bon moment. (He got rich by investing in real estate at the right time.)

enrich, supplement (transitive verb: add substance to something) ●

• Ce pain a été enrichi en fibres pour améliorer ses qualités nutritives. (This bread has been enriched with fiber to improve its nutritional qualities.)

enrich (transitive verb: open the mind of) ●

• Les voyages à l’étranger enrichissent notre vision du monde. (Trips abroad enrich our vision of the world.)

be enriched, be enhanced (reflexive verb: gain elements) ●

• La langue s’enrichit constamment de nouveaux mots et expressions. (The language is constantly enriched with new words and expressions.)

be enriched by, be enhanced by, become richer through (reflexive verb: increase through something) ●

• Notre équipe s’enrichit de l’expertise de chaque nouveau membre. (Our team is enriched by the expertise of each new member.)

restaurant [ʁɛstɔʁɑ̃]

restaurant (noun [m]: business where one comes to eat) ●

• Nous avons réservé une table dans un restaurant italien pour ce soir. (We reserved a table in an Italian restaurant for tonight.)

destin

destiny, future, futurity (noun [m]: one’s future path) ●

• Elle rêve de devenir médecin : c’est son destin. (She dreams of becoming a doctor: it’s her destiny.)

destiny, fate, fortune, prospect (noun [m]: one’s lot or existence) ●

• Il a accepté son destin avec courage. (He accepted his fate with courage.)

destiny, fate, fortune (noun [m]: fate or predestination) ●

• Le destin des civilisations anciennes reste mystérieux. (The destiny of ancient civilizations remains mysterious.)

discrimination

discrimination (noun [f]: differential or unfair treatment) ●

• La discrimination à l’embauche est interdite par la loi. (Discrimination in hiring is prohibited by law.)

discrimination, distinction (noun [f]: ability to distinguish) ●

• Il faut apprendre la discrimination entre les faits et les opinions. (We must learn the distinction between facts and opinions.)

certitude

certainty, conviction (noun [f]: firm belief) ●

• J’ai la certitude qu’il dira la vérité. (I have the certainty that he will tell the truth.)

absolute certainty, sure thing (noun [f]: something completely certain) ●

• Sa réussite à l’examen est une certitude. (His success in the exam is an absolute certainty.)

huile

oil (noun [f]: cooking fat) ●

• L’huile d’olive est excellente pour la santé. (Olive oil is excellent for health.)

oil (noun [f]: lubricant) ●

• Le mécanicien a vérifié le niveau d’huile du moteur. (The mechanic checked the oil level of the engine.)

oil (noun [f]: paint medium) ●

• Elle préfère peindre à l’huile plutôt qu’à l’aquarelle. (She prefers to paint with oils rather than watercolors.)

oil painting, oil (noun [f]: artwork made with oils) ●

• Cette huile du XVIIe siècle vaut une fortune. (This 17th-century oil painting is worth a fortune.)

bigwig, big cheese, VIP (noun [f]: important person) ●

• Toutes les huiles de l’entreprise ont assisté à la réunion. (All the bigwigs of the company attended the meeting.)

sacré

sacred, holy (adjective: religious) ●

• Ce lieu est sacré pour les fidèles. (This place is sacred to the faithful.)

sacred (adjective: important and inviolable) ●

• Le dimanche est sacré dans cette famille. (Sunday is sacred in this family.)

a hell of a, quite a, some (adjective: emphatic intensifier) ●

• Tu as fait un sacré travail ! (You’ve done a hell of a job!)

blasted, damn, damned, bloody (adjective: emphatic curse) ●

• Cette sacrée voiture ne démarre jamais ! (This damned car never starts!)

autonomie

independence, self-sufficiency, self-reliance (noun [f]: capacity for independence) ●

• Les adolescents recherchent davantage d’autonomie. (Teenagers seek greater independence.)

battery life (noun [f]: operating duration) ●

• Mon ordinateur a une bonne autonomie de huit heures. (My laptop has a good battery life of eight hours.)

range (noun [f]: distance without recharging) ●

• Cette voiture électrique offre une autonomie de 400 kilomètres. (This electric car offers a range of 400 kilometers.)

independence, autonomy (noun [f]: local government power) ●

• La région réclame plus d’autonomie politique. (The region demands more political autonomy.)

sac

bag (noun [m]: container for carrying) ●

• J’ai mis mes courses dans un sac en plastique. (I put my groceries in a plastic bag.)

bag, handbag (noun [m]: woman’s accessory) ●

• Elle a oublié son sac à main dans le taxi. (She forgot her handbag in the taxi.)

plundering, pillaging, sacking (noun [m]: act of ransacking) ●

• Le sac de la ville a duré trois jours. (The sacking of the city lasted three days.)

stock

stock, reserve (noun [m]: inventory) ●

• Nous devons renouveler notre stock avant la fin du mois. (We must replenish our stock before the end of the month.)

ton, mass, stash (noun [m]: large quantity) ●

• J’ai un stock impressionnant de livres à lire. (I have an impressive stash of books to read.)

invoquer

invoke, cite (transitive verb: have recourse to law or rule) ●

• L’accusé a invoqué son droit au silence. (The accused invoked his right to silence.)

invoke, cite, allude to, refer to (transitive verb: give as an argument) ●

• Il a invoqué une excuse peu convaincante pour son absence. (He invoked an unconvincing excuse for his absence.)

call on, call upon, appeal to (transitive verb: call upon for help) ●

• Les citoyens ont invoqué l’aide du gouvernement. (The citizens called on the government for help.)

appeal to, pray to, supplicate, invoke (transitive verb: pray to a deity) ●

• Les fidèles invoquent la protection divine chaque jour. (The faithful pray to divine protection every day.)

compromettre

compromise, jeopardize (transitive verb: endanger) ●

• Cette erreur pourrait compromettre nos résultats. (This mistake could jeopardize our results.)

compromise (transitive verb: damage someone’s reputation) ●

• Ces révélations ont compromis le député dans l’affaire. (These revelations compromised the MP in the affair.)

incriminate (transitive verb: harm someone’s reputation) ●

• Les documents découverts pourraient le compromettre gravement. (The documents discovered could seriously incriminate him.)

arracher [aʀaʃe]

pull [sth] off, tear [sth] off (transitive verb: packaging) ●

• Il faut arracher l’étiquette avant de porter cette chemise. (You need to pull the label off before wearing this shirt.)

pull [sth] up (transitive verb: weeds) ●

• Nous devons arracher les mauvaises herbes du jardin chaque semaine. (We must pull up the weeds from the garden every week.)

remove (transitive verb) ●

• Le médecin va arracher cette dent infectée demain. (The doctor will remove this infected tooth tomorrow.)

extract [sth] from [sb] (transitive verb: figurative, obtain with difficulty) ●

• Les négociateurs ont réussi à arracher une promesse au ministre. (The negotiators succeeded in extracting a promise from the minister.)

tear [sb] away from [sb/sth] (transitive verb: figurative, separate) ●

• Il est difficile d’arracher les enfants de leurs jeux vidéo. (It’s difficult to tear children away from their video games.)

wrest [sb] from [sb/sth], rescue [sb] from [sb/sth] (transitive verb: formal, save) ●

• Les pompiers ont réussi à arracher les victimes des flammes. (The firefighters managed to rescue the victims from the flames.)

drag [sb] away from [sth] (transitive verb: figurative, stop activity) ●

• Mon patron a dû m’arracher de mon bureau pour que je prenne une pause. (My boss had to drag me away from my desk to make me take a break.)

be torn off, be ripped off, be pulled off (reflexive verb) ●

• Le bouton s’est arraché quand j’ai mis mon manteau. (The button was torn off when I put on my coat.)

sombre [sɔ̃bʀ]

dark, gloomy (adjective: lacking light) ●

• Cette pièce est trop sombre, il faudrait ouvrir les rideaux. (This room is too dark, we should open the curtains.)

dark (adverb: with little light) ●

• Il fait sombre dans ce couloir sans fenêtre. (It’s dark in this corridor without windows.)

sombre, somber, gloomy, glum (adjective: figurative, not cheerful) ●

• Après cette mauvaise nouvelle, il gardait un visage sombre. (After this bad news, he kept a gloomy face.)

dubious, questionable, murky, shadowy, shady (adjective: figurative, suspicious) ●

• La police enquête sur cette sombre affaire de corruption. (The police are investigating this murky corruption case.)

dreadful, right (adjective: familiar, pejorative, lamentable) ●

• Cet homme est un sombre imbécile qui ne comprend jamais rien. (This man is a right idiot who never understands anything.)

barre [baʀ]

bar (noun [f]: wood, metal, etc.) ●

• Une barre de métal bloque l’accès à ce passage. (A metal bar blocks access to this passage.)

bar (noun [f]: chocolate, cereal, etc.) ●

• J’achète toujours des barres de chocolat pour mes enfants. (I always buy chocolate bars for my children.)

contradiction [kɔ̃tʀadiksjɔ̃]

objection, contradiction (noun [f]: opposing statement) ●

• Il accepte rarement une contradiction de ses collègues. (He rarely accepts an objection from his colleagues.)

contradiction, inconsistency, discrepancy (noun [f]: incoherence) ●

• Il y a plusieurs contradictions dans son témoignage. (There are several contradictions in his testimony.)

contrariness, argumentativeness (noun [f]: tendency to contradict) ●

• Son esprit de contradiction rend toute discussion difficile. (His contrariness makes any discussion difficult.)

maîtriser [mɛtʀize]

master, understand (transitive verb: language) ●

• Elle maîtrise parfaitement l’espagnol et l’italien. (She masters Spanish and Italian perfectly.)

understand, know about (transitive verb: resource) ●

• Les ingénieurs maîtrisent cette nouvelle technologie. (The engineers understand this new technology.)

overcome, control, manage, handle (transitive verb: emotion) ●

• Il doit maîtriser sa peur avant de parler en public. (He must overcome his fear before speaking in public.)

control, get under control, overpower (transitive verb: by force) ●

• Les gardiens ont maîtrisé le prisonnier violent. (The guards overpowered the violent prisoner.)

have self-control (reflexive verb) ●

• Elle a du mal à se maîtriser quand elle est en colère. (She has trouble having self-control when she is angry.)

violer [vjɔle]

violate, break (transitive verb: law) ●

• L’entreprise a violé plusieurs règlements de sécurité. (The company violated several safety regulations.)

rape (transitive verb: commit rape) ●

• Le tribunal a condamné l’homme qui a violé cette femme. (The court sentenced the man who raped this woman.)

violate, desecrate (transitive verb: open illegally) ●

• Des vandales ont violé plusieurs tombes dans ce cimetière ancien. (Vandals violated several graves in this old cemetery.)

souveraineté [suvʀɛnte]

sovereignty (noun [f]: own power) ●

• La souveraineté nationale est un principe fondamental de notre constitution. (National sovereignty is a fundamental principle of our constitution.)

sovereign power (noun [f]: figurative, predominance) ●

• Dans cette démocratie, la souveraineté du peuple est respectée. (In this democracy, the sovereign power of the people is respected.)

épargner [epaʀɲe]

save, save up (intransitive verb: economize) ●

• Nous devons épargner pour acheter une maison. (We must save to buy a house.)

save, save up, set aside (transitive verb: put money aside) ●

• J’épargne cinquante euros chaque mois pour mes vacances. (I save fifty euros every month for my vacation.)

spare (transitive verb: avoid) ●

• Il voulait lui épargner cette terrible nouvelle. (He wanted to spare her this terrible news.)

spare (transitive verb: not kill) ●

• Le roi a décidé d’épargner le prisonnier. (The king decided to spare the prisoner.)

spare, go easy on [sb], be kind to [sb] (transitive verb: protect someone’s pride) ●

• Le professeur l’a épargné pendant la correction publique. (The teacher spared him during the public correction.)

save yourself, spare yourself (reflexive verb: avoid for oneself) ●

• Elle s’est épargnée cette corvée en demandant de l’aide. (She spared herself this chore by asking for help.)

concentration [kɔ̃sɑ̃tʀasjɔ̃]

concentration, focus (noun [f]: attention on subject) ●

• La concentration est essentielle pour réussir cet examen difficile. (Concentration is essential to pass this difficult exam.)

concentration (noun [f]: gathering, assembly) ●

• La concentration de troupes près de la frontière inquiète les pays voisins. (The concentration of troops near the border worries neighboring countries.)

téléphonique [telefɔnik]

phone, telephone (adjective: done by phone) ●

• J’ai eu une conversation téléphonique avec mon frère hier soir. (I had a phone conversation with my brother last night.)

remise [ʀ(ə)miz]

delivery, presentation, submission, remittance (noun [f]: handing over) ●

• La remise des diplômes aura lieu en juin. (The presentation of the diplomas will take place in June.)

discount, reduction (noun [f]: price reduction) ●

• Le magasin offre une remise de 20% sur tous les articles. (The store is offering a 20% discount on all items.)

putting back, re- (noun [f]: returning to previous state) ●

• La remise en état de la maison prendra plusieurs mois. (Putting the house back in order will take several months.)

store room, shed, outhouse, stock room (noun [f]: storage place) ●

• Les outils de jardinage sont rangés dans la remise. (The gardening tools are stored in the shed.)

mec

guy, lad, bloke (noun [m]: man, informal) ●

• Il y avait trois mecs au café qui discutaient de politique. (There were three guys at the café discussing politics.)

boyfriend, man, bloke, fella, guy (noun [m]: romantic partner, informal) ●

• Son mec l’a emmenée au cinéma hier soir. (Her boyfriend took her to the cinema last night.)

mate, buddy, man (interjection: addressing a man, informal) ●

• Hé mec, tu peux me passer le sel ? (Hey man, can you pass me the salt?)

solidarité

solidarity (noun [f]: mutual support) ●

• Les travailleurs ont fait grève par solidarité avec leurs collègues. (The workers went on strike out of solidarity with their colleagues.)

restreindre

restrain, limit, control (transitive verb: reduce, restrict) ●

• Nous devons restreindre notre consommation d’énergie. (We must limit our energy consumption.)

restrict yourself, limit yourself, cut back, curb your spending, be careful with your money (reflexive verb: economize) ●

• Depuis qu’elle a perdu son emploi, elle se restreint sur les dépenses. (Since she lost her job, she’s been cutting back on spending.)

limit yourself to, be limited to (reflexive verb: confine oneself) ●

• Le débat se restreint aux questions économiques. (The debate is limited to economic questions.)

décennie

decade (noun [f]: ten-year period) ●

• La dernière décennie a vu des changements technologiques majeurs. (The last decade has seen major technological changes.)

aussitôt

immediately, straight away, right away (adverb: at once) ●

• Elle a reçu le message et a répondu aussitôt. (She received the message and replied immediately.)

as soon as, immediately, the moment (conjunction phrase: when) ●

• Aussitôt que le train est arrivé, les passagers sont descendus. (As soon as the train arrived, the passengers got off.)

immediately after, straight after, just after (adverbial phrase: right afterwards) ●

• Il est parti aussitôt après la réunion. (He left immediately after the meeting.)

no sooner…than (adverb: expressing rapid succession) ●

• Aussitôt arrivé, aussitôt reparti. (No sooner arrived than departed.)

officiellement

officially (adverb: formally declared by authorities) ●

• Le projet sera officiellement lancé la semaine prochaine. (The project will be officially launched next week.)

chasser

go hunting (intransitive verb: practice hunting) ●

• Ils chassent tous les week-ends en automne. (They go hunting every weekend in autumn.)

hunt, shoot (transitive verb: pursue animal to kill) ●

• Les loups chassent en meute la nuit. (Wolves hunt in packs at night.)

hunt, chase, go after (transitive verb: pursue prey to capture) ●

• Le chat chasse les souris dans le grenier. (The cat hunts mice in the attic.)

shoo away, chase away, brush off, drive out (transitive verb: make animal leave) ●

• Elle chasse les pigeons du balcon avec un balai. (She shoos the pigeons away from the balcony with a broom.)

blow, sweep (transitive verb: push something forward) ●

• Le vent violent chasse les nuages vers l’est. (The strong wind sweeps the clouds eastward.)

get rid of, dispel (transitive verb: make disappear) ●

• Une promenade dans la nature chasse les idées noires. (A walk in nature gets rid of dark thoughts.)

fire, sack, dismiss (transitive verb: terminate employment, informal) ●

• L’entreprise a chassé plusieurs employés après le scandale. (The company fired several employees after the scandal.)

dîner

dinner (noun [m]: evening meal, France) ●

• Le dîner sera servi à vingt heures ce soir. (Dinner will be served at eight o’clock tonight.)

dinner (noun [m]: dinner event) ●

• Nous sommes invités à un dîner officiel à l’ambassade. (We are invited to an official dinner at the embassy.)

eat, have dinner, eat dinner, dine (intransitive verb: have evening meal, France) ●

• Nous dînons toujours vers dix-neuf heures. (We always have dinner around seven o’clock.)

lunch (noun [m]: midday meal, Belgium/Switzerland/Quebec) ●

• Au Québec, le dîner se prend à midi. (In Quebec, lunch is eaten at noon.)

have lunch, eat lunch, lunch (intransitive verb: have midday meal, Belgium/Switzerland/Quebec) ●

• En Belgique, nous dînons à midi et soupons le soir. (In Belgium, we have lunch at noon and supper in the evening.)

dine on, eat (transitive verb indirect: consume as meal) ●

• Ce soir, nous dînerons de poisson frais. (Tonight we will dine on fresh fish.)

personnellement

personally, in person (adverb: oneself in person) ●

• Le ministre a personnellement inauguré le nouveau bâtiment. (The minister personally inaugurated the new building.)

personally, myself (adverb: expressing personal opinion) ●

• Personnellement, je pense que cette décision est injuste. (Personally, I think this decision is unfair.)

fréquenter

frequent, visit (transitive verb: bar, club) ●

• Je fréquente ce café depuis dix ans. (I’ve been frequenting this café for ten years.)

spend time with [sb], keep company with [sb] (transitive verb: social relations) ●

• Elle fréquente des artistes et des musiciens. (She spends time with artists and musicians.)

go out with [sb], see (transitive verb: romantic partner) ●

• Paul fréquente une étudiante en médecine. (Paul is going out with a medical student.)

go out, see each other (reflexive verb: dating) ●

• Ils se fréquentent depuis six mois. (They’ve been going out for six months.)

projeter

plan, envisage, contemplate (transitive verb: intend) ●

• Nous projetons de déménager en province l’année prochaine. (We are planning to move to the countryside next year.)

show (transitive verb: display film or slides) ●

• Le professeur projette un documentaire sur la guerre. (The teacher is showing a documentary about the war.)

throw, project, launch (transitive verb: propel forcefully) ●

• Le volcan a projeté des roches à plusieurs kilomètres. (The volcano threw rocks several kilometers away.)

be thrown, be projected (verb phrase: cast shadow) ●

• La lumière du soleil se projette à travers les fenêtres. (The sunlight is projected through the windows.)

project (transitive verb: mathematics) ●

• Il faut projeter ce vecteur sur l’axe horizontal. (You need to project this vector onto the horizontal axis.)

see yourself, picture yourself (reflexive verb: imagine future) ●

• Il a du mal à se projeter dans ce nouveau poste. (He has trouble picturing himself in this new position.)

be projected (reflexive verb: be displayed) ●

• Le film se projette sur un grand écran blanc. (The film is projected onto a large white screen.)

littéraire

literary, literature (adjective: relating to writing) ●

• Elle étudie l’histoire littéraire du dix-neuvième siècle. (She studies the literary history of the nineteenth century.)

arts (adjective: relating to letters) ●

• Mon fils préfère les matières littéraires aux sciences. (My son prefers arts subjects to science.)

literary (adjective: elevated language) ●

• Ce mot est d’un registre littéraire et rarement utilisé à l’oral. (This word is of a literary register and rarely used in speech.)

literary person, the literati (noun [m/f]: person who appreciates literature) ●

• Les littéraires se réunissent chaque semaine pour discuter de romans. (Literary people meet every week to discuss novels.)

présider

preside over [sth], chair (transitive verb: lead) ●

• Le ministre préside la commission d’enquête. (The minister is presiding over the inquiry committee.)

preside over [sth], watch over [sth], supervise (transitive verb indirect: oversee) ●

• Elle préside aux destinées de l’entreprise familiale. (She presides over the destiny of the family business.)

govern (transitive verb indirect: strongly influence) ●

• Les mêmes principes président à toutes ses décisions. (The same principles govern all his decisions.)

fortune [fɔʀtyn]

fortune, wealth (noun [f]: money, riches) ●

• Il a hérité d’une fortune considérable de son oncle. (He inherited a considerable fortune from his uncle.)

a fortune (noun [f]: large sum of money) ●

• Cette montre a coûté une fortune ! (This watch cost a fortune!)

wealth holder (noun [f]: rich person) ●

• C’est l’une des plus grandes fortunes du pays. (He is one of the country’s greatest wealth holders.)

fortune, luck (noun [f]: fate or destiny) ●

• La fortune lui a souri ce jour-là. (Fortune smiled on him that day.)

malheureux

unhappy, sad, sorrowful (adjective: person feeling sad) ●

• Elle est malheureuse depuis la séparation. (She has been unhappy since the separation.)

unlucky (adjective: person who is unfortunate) ●

• Il a été malheureux dans ses affaires cette année. (He was unlucky in his business dealings this year.)

unsuccessful, unfortunate, unhappy (adjective: experience without success) ●

• Ce fut une tentative malheureuse de réconciliation. (It was an unsuccessful attempt at reconciliation.)

unfortunate, regrettable (adjective: awkward gesture or words) ●

• Son choix de mots était malheureux dans cette situation. (His choice of words was unfortunate in that situation.)

measly (adjective: small, insignificant sum) ●

• Il m’a donné trois malheureux euros pour tout ce travail. (He gave me three measly euros for all that work.)

needy, poor, poor person (noun [m/f]: person in need) ●

• L’association aide les malheureux du quartier. (The organization helps the needy in the neighborhood.)

poor soul, poor devil (interjection: expression of pity) ●

• Malheureux ! Qu’as-tu fait ? (Poor soul! What have you done?)

numérique

digital (adjective: electronic, not analog) ●

• Nous avons installé une caméra numérique dans le bureau. (We installed a digital camera in the office.)

numerical (adjective: relating to numbers) ●

• L’analyse numérique est une branche des mathématiques. (Numerical analysis is a branch of mathematics.)

digital technology (noun [m]: computing and telecommunications) ●

• Le numérique a transformé notre façon de communiquer. (Digital technology has transformed how we communicate.)

combattant

combatant (noun [m/f]: soldier) ●

• Les combattants ont déposé les armes après l’accord de paix. (The combatants laid down their arms after the peace agreement.)

combat, fighting (adjective: engaged in combat) ●

• Les forces combattantes ont reçu des renforts. (The combat forces received reinforcements.)

fighter, scrapper, brawler (noun [m/f]: someone who likes to fight) ●

• C’est un vrai combattant, il ne renonce jamais. (He’s a real fighter; he never gives up.)

Siamese fighting fish, betta (noun [m]: freshwater fish) ●

• Mon fils élève des combattants dans son aquarium. (My son raises Siamese fighting fish in his aquarium.)

ruff (noun [m]: wading bird) ●

• Les combattants migrent vers le nord au printemps. (Ruffs migrate north in spring.)

soupçonner

suspect (transitive verb: have suspicion about something) ●

• Je soupçonne qu’il y a un problème avec les comptes. (I suspect there is a problem with the accounts.)

suspect (transitive verb: believe someone guilty) ●

• La police soupçonne le voisin du cambriolage. (The police suspect the neighbor of the burglary.)

suspect [sb] of [sth] (verb plus preposition: accuse someone) ●

• On le soupçonne de fraude fiscale. (He is suspected of tax fraud.)

doubt, have doubts about (transitive verb: question something) ●

• Je soupçonne ses motivations réelles dans cette affaire. (I doubt his real motivations in this matter.)

suspect (verb phrase: believe someone does something) ●

• Je soupçonne mon collègue de mentir sur ses résultats. (I suspect my colleague of lying about his results.)

merde [mɛʀd]

shit, damn (interjection: expressing anger or disappointment) ●

• Merde ! J’ai oublié mes clés dans la voiture. (Shit! I left my keys in the car.)

shit, crap, mess (noun [f]: excrement) ●

• Il y a de la merde de chien sur le trottoir. (There’s dog shit on the sidewalk.)

shit, crap (noun [f]: worthless thing) ●

• Ce film, c’est vraiment de la merde. (This movie is really shit.)

cock-up, screw-up (noun [f]: problem, trouble) ●

• Il y a eu une merde avec la réservation de l’hôtel. (There was a cock-up with the hotel reservation.)

shitstorm, mess (noun [f]: difficult situation) ●

• On est dans une sacrée merde maintenant ! (We’re in a real mess now!)

shit, crap (noun [f]: pollution) ●

• Cette usine déverse sa merde dans la rivière. (This factory dumps its shit in the river.)

Break a leg!, Good luck! (interjection: wishing good fortune) ●

• Merde pour ton examen demain ! (Good luck for your exam tomorrow!)

entrepreneur

business owner, businessman, businesswoman (noun [m/f]: head of a company) ●

• L’entrepreneur a embauché dix nouveaux employés cette année. (The business owner hired ten new employees this year.)

contractor, builder (noun [m/f]: construction company head) ●

• Nous avons consulté plusieurs entrepreneurs pour rénover la cuisine. (We consulted several contractors to renovate the kitchen.)

entrepreneur (noun [m/f]: innovator) ●

• Cet entrepreneur a créé trois start-ups en cinq ans. (This entrepreneur created three start-ups in five years.)

exposition

exhibition (noun [f]: presentation of artistic works) ●

• J’ai visité une exposition de photographie contemporaine hier. (I visited a contemporary photography exhibition yesterday.)

exposure (noun [f]: being under influence) ●

• L’exposition prolongée au bruit peut endommager l’ouïe. (Prolonged exposure to noise can damage hearing.)

exposing, exposure (noun [f]: act of showing) ●

• L’exposition de ces documents secrets a créé un scandale. (The exposure of these secret documents created a scandal.)

orientation, exposure (noun [f]: direction something faces) ●

• Cette maison bénéficie d’une exposition plein sud. (This house benefits from a south-facing orientation.)

exposure (noun [f]: Photography, light radiation) ●

• Le photographe a ajusté l’exposition pour obtenir une meilleure image. (The photographer adjusted the exposure to get a better image.)

exposure (noun [f]: potential risk, figurative) ●

• La banque a minimisé son exposition aux marchés émergents. (The bank minimized its exposure to emerging markets.)

marchand

merchant, trader, seller (noun [m/f]: shopkeeper) ●

• Le marchand du coin vend des fruits et légumes frais. (The local merchant sells fresh fruit and vegetables.)

stallholder (noun [m/f]: outdoor market vendor) ●

• Ce marchand propose des produits artisanaux au marché chaque dimanche. (This stallholder offers artisanal products at the market every Sunday.)

cri [kʁi]

cry, shout (noun [m]: loud sound from the voice) ●

• Un cri perçant a réveillé tout le quartier. (A piercing cry woke up the whole neighborhood.)

cry, call, sound, noise (noun [m]: sound emitted by an animal) ●

• Le cri du loup résonne dans la forêt la nuit. (The wolf’s cry echoes through the forest at night.)

scream (noun [m]: very loud and high pitched sound) ●

• Elle a poussé un cri de terreur en voyant l’araignée. (She let out a scream of terror upon seeing the spider.)

holler (noun [m]: mainly US usage) ●

• Son cri a attiré l’attention des passants dans la rue. (His holler attracted the attention of passersby in the street.)

féminin

female, feminine (adjective: relating to women) ●

• La voix féminine est généralement plus aiguë que la voix masculine. (The female voice is generally higher pitched than the male voice.)

women’s (adjective: group composed of women) ●

• L’équipe féminine de basket a remporté le championnat. (The women’s basketball team won the championship.)

women’s, for women (adjective: intended for women) ●

• Ce magazine féminin propose des articles sur la mode et la beauté. (This women’s magazine features articles on fashion and beauty.)

feminine (noun [m]: grammatical gender) ●

• En français, le mot « table » est au féminin. (In French, the word “table” is in the feminine.)

feminine (adjective: resembling a woman) ●

• Ce mannequin masculin a des traits féminins délicats. (This male model has delicate feminine features.)

for women, women’s (adjective: reserved for women only) ●

• Cette salle de sport propose des cours exclusivement féminins. (This gym offers classes exclusively for women.)

feminine (adjective: Grammar) ●

• L’adjectif doit s’accorder au féminin avec le nom. (The adjective must agree in the feminine with the noun.)

désert

desert (noun [m]: very dry place) ●

• Le désert du Sahara est le plus grand désert chaud du monde. (The Sahara Desert is the largest hot desert in the world.)

deserted, uninhabited, barren (adjective: unpopulated) ●

• Ils ont découvert une plage déserte au bout de l’île. (They discovered a deserted beach at the end of the island.)

desert (adjective: island context) ●

• Les naufragés ont survécu sur une île déserte pendant trois mois. (The castaways survived on a desert island for three months.)

wasteland, wilderness (noun [m]: empty, uninhabited place, figurative) ●

• Ce quartier est devenu un désert culturel depuis la fermeture du théâtre. (This neighborhood has become a cultural wasteland since the theater closed.)

vêtement

item of clothing, clothing item, article of clothing, garment (noun [m]: piece of clothing) ●

• Ce vêtement doit être lavé à la main. (This item of clothing must be hand washed.)

clothes, clothing (noun [m] pl: garments worn on the body) ●

• Les vêtements doivent être rangés dans l’armoire. (The clothes must be put away in the wardrobe.)

blanket (noun [m]: thing that covers another, literary, figurative) ●

• Un vêtement de neige recouvrait les montagnes. (A blanket of snow covered the mountains.)

autrefois

once, at one time, once upon a time, in the past (adverb: in the past, formerly) ●

• Autrefois, les gens voyageaient en calèche. (Once upon a time, people traveled by carriage.)

there was a time, there was a time when (adverb: in days gone by) ●

• Autrefois, cette ville était un petit village de pêcheurs. (There was a time when this city was a small fishing village.)

in days gone by, in times past (adverb: archaic phrasing) ●

• Les coutumes d’autrefois ont presque toutes disparu. (The customs of days gone by have almost all disappeared.)

surmonter

overcome, conquer, master, surmount, get the better of, get over, get past (transitive verb: defeat an obstacle) ●

• Elle a réussi à surmonter sa peur de l’avion. (She managed to overcome her fear of flying.)

sit on top of, sit atop of, top, crown (transitive verb: be placed above something) ●

• Une croix surmonte le clocher de l’église. (A cross sits on top of the church steeple.)

marchandise

merchandise, goods (noun [f]: material goods) ●

• La marchandise sera livrée demain matin. (The merchandise will be delivered tomorrow morning.)

autochtone [ɔtɔktɔn]

native (noun [m/f]: indigenous person) ●

• Les autochtones de cette région parlent encore leur langue ancestrale. (The natives of this region still speak their ancestral language.)

native (adjective: indigenous) ●

• La culture autochtone mérite d’être protégée et valorisée. (Native culture deserves to be protected and valued.)

autochthon (noun [m/f]: indigenous person) ●

• Les autochthones ont développé des techniques agricoles adaptées au climat local. (The autochthons developed farming techniques adapted to the local climate.)

aboriginal (noun [m/f]: indigenous person) ●

• Les aborigènes d’Australie possèdent une riche tradition orale. (The aboriginals of Australia possess a rich oral tradition.)

autochthonous (adjective: indigenous, formal) ●

• Les espèces autochtones sont menacées par les plantes invasives. (Autochthonous species are threatened by invasive plants.)

autochthonal (adjective: indigenous, formal) ●

• La population autochtone a conservé ses traditions malgré la colonisation. (The autochthonal population preserved its traditions despite colonization.)

autochthonic (adjective: indigenous, formal) ●

• Les communautés autochtones luttent pour leurs droits territoriaux. (Autochthonic communities are fighting for their territorial rights.)

aboriginal (adjective: indigenous) ●

• Les droits aborigènes sont enfin reconnus par la loi. (Aboriginal rights are finally recognized by law.)

indigenous (adjective: native to a region) ●

• Les plantes autochtones s’adaptent mieux au climat que les espèces importées. (Indigenous plants adapt better to the climate than imported species.)

continent [kɔ̃tinɑ̃]

continent (noun [m]: landmass) ●

• L’Asie est le plus grand continent du monde. (Asia is the largest continent in the world.)

mainland (noun [m]: land as opposed to island) ●

• Nous prenons le ferry pour rejoindre le continent demain matin. (We’re taking the ferry to reach the mainland tomorrow morning.)

continent (adjective: able to control bodily functions, Medical) ●

• Après l’opération, le patient est heureusement resté continent. (After the operation, the patient fortunately remained continent.)

définitivement [definitivmɑ̃]

permanently (adverb: irrevocably) ●

• Le magasin a définitivement fermé ses portes le mois dernier. (The store permanently closed its doors last month.)

for good (adverb: permanently) ●

• Elle a quitté Paris définitivement pour s’installer à Lyon. (She left Paris for good to settle in Lyon.)

once and for all (adverb: finally and permanently) ●

• Il faut régler ce problème définitivement avant qu’il ne s’aggrave. (We must resolve this problem once and for all before it gets worse.)

definitively (adverb: conclusively) ●

• Les négociations ont définitivement échoué hier soir. (The negotiations definitively failed last night.)

heureusement [øʁøzmɑ̃]

fortunately (adverb: luckily) ●

• Heureusement, nous avons trouvé un taxi juste à temps. (Fortunately, we found a taxi just in time.)

luckily (adverb: by good fortune) ●

• Heureusement, personne n’a été blessé dans l’accident. (Luckily, nobody was injured in the accident.)

well (adverb: with happiness) ●

• Le projet s’est heureusement achevé dans les délais prévus. (The project ended well within the expected timeframe.)

happily (adverb: with a happy outcome) ●

• La dispute s’est heureusement résolue sans intervention extérieure. (The dispute was happily resolved without outside intervention.)

Just as well (conjunction phrase: it’s fortunate that, informal) ●

• Heureusement que tu as pensé à prendre les clés ! (Just as well you remembered to take the keys!)

Good job (conjunction phrase: it’s fortunate that, UK informal) ●

• Heureusement que le médecin est arrivé rapidement ! (Good job the doctor arrived quickly!)

It is lucky (conjunction phrase: it’s fortunate) ●

• Heureusement qu’il pleut car les jardins avaient besoin d’eau. (It is lucky that it’s raining because the gardens needed water.)

It is fortunate (conjunction phrase: it’s lucky) ●

• Heureusement que nous avions réservé une table à l’avance. (It is fortunate that we had reserved a table in advance.)

digne [diɲ]

dignified (adjective: showing dignity) ●

• Elle a gardé une attitude digne malgré les circonstances difficiles. (She maintained a dignified attitude despite the difficult circumstances.)

honourable (adjective: estimable, UK) ●

• C’est un homme digne qui respecte toujours ses engagements. (He is an honourable man who always keeps his commitments.)

honorable (adjective: estimable, US) ●

• Ils ont agi de manière digne et responsable. (They acted in an honorable and responsible manner.)

worthy (adjective: estimable) ●

• Ce candidat est digne de notre confiance. (This candidate is worthy of our trust.)

worthy of (adjective: deserving of) ●

• Son travail est digne d’éloges. (His work is worthy of praise.)

deserving of (adjective: meriting) ●

• Cette découverte est digne d’attention. (This discovery is deserving of attention.)

deserve (transitive verb: to merit) ●

• Ce film est digne d’un Oscar. (This film deserves an Oscar.)

merit (transitive verb: to deserve) ●

• Cette affaire est digne d’une enquête approfondie. (This matter merits a thorough investigation.)

trustworthy (suffix: worthy of trust) ●

• Il cherche un collaborateur digne de confiance. (He’s looking for a trustworthy collaborator.)

worthy (adjective: faithful and resembling) ●

• Elle est la digne héritière de sa grand-mère. (She is the worthy heir of her grandmother.)

deserving (adjective: faithful and resembling) ●

• Il est le digne successeur du fondateur. (He is the deserving successor to the founder.)

guide [gid]

guide (noun [m]: book) ●

• J’ai acheté un guide touristique avant de partir en voyage. (I bought a tourist guide before leaving on my trip.)

guide book (noun [m]: informational book) ●

• Ce guide contient toutes les informations nécessaires pour visiter la région. (This guide book contains all the necessary information for visiting the region.)

guide (noun [m/f]: tour leader) ●

• Notre guide nous a raconté l’histoire fascinante de ce château. (Our guide told us the fascinating history of this castle.)

mountain guide (noun [m/f]: climbing professional) ●

• Le guide nous a aidés à atteindre le sommet en toute sécurité. (The mountain guide helped us reach the summit safely.)

tabac [taba]

tobacco (noun [m]: plant dried for smoking) ●

• La culture du tabac est une activité agricole importante dans cette région. (Tobacco cultivation is an important agricultural activity in this region.)

tobacconist (noun [m]: shop) ●

• Je vais au tabac acheter des timbres et le journal. (I’m going to the tobacconist to buy stamps and the newspaper.)

tobacconist’s (noun [m]: shop) ●

• Le tabac du coin ouvre à sept heures le matin. (The tobacconist’s on the corner opens at seven in the morning.)

snuff (noun [m]: powder to inhale) ●

• Autrefois, les aristocrates prisaient du tabac en poudre. (In the past, aristocrats used to take snuff.)

rendement [ʁɑ̃dmɑ̃]

yield (noun [m]: productivity) ●

• Le rendement des récoltes a augmenté cette année grâce au beau temps. (The yield of the harvests increased this year thanks to the good weather.)

productivity (noun [m]: business output) ●

• L’entreprise cherche à améliorer le rendement de ses employés. (The company is seeking to improve the productivity of its employees.)

output (noun [m]: machine production) ●

• Cette machine a un excellent rendement pour sa taille. (This machine has excellent output for its size.)

return (noun [m]: financial profit, Finance) ●

• Ce placement offre un rendement annuel de 5 pour cent. (This investment offers an annual return of 5 percent.)

ampleur [ɑ̃plœʁ]

extent (noun [f]: scope, figurative) ●

• Nous ne connaissons pas encore l’ampleur des dommages causés par l’inondation. (We don’t yet know the extent of the damage caused by the flood.)

scope (noun [f]: range, figurative) ●

• L’ampleur de ce projet nécessite une équipe importante. (The scope of this project requires a large team.)

scale (noun [f]: magnitude, figurative) ●

• Personne n’avait prévu l’ampleur de la crise économique. (Nobody had anticipated the scale of the economic crisis.)

sweep (noun [f]: largeness of movement) ●

• L’ampleur de ses gestes révèle son expérience de danseur classique. (The sweep of his gestures reveals his experience as a classical dancer.)

breadth (noun [f]: width) ●

• L’ampleur de cette vallée est impressionnante. (The breadth of this valley is impressive.)

size (noun [f]: large dimensions) ●

• L’ampleur de ce bâtiment m’a surpris. (The size of this building surprised me.)

pleinement [plɛnmɑ̃]

fully (adverb: entirely) ●

• Je suis pleinement conscient des risques de cette décision. (I am fully aware of the risks of this decision.)

entirely (adverb: completely) ●

• Elle s’est pleinement investie dans ce projet. (She entirely committed herself to this project.)

completely (adverb: totally) ●

• Nous sommes pleinement satisfaits du résultat. (We are completely satisfied with the result.)

wholeheartedly (adverb: with full heart) ●

• Je soutiens pleinement votre candidature. (I wholeheartedly support your candidacy.)

désastre [dezastʁ]

disaster, catastrophe, calamity, tragedy (noun [m]: catastrophe, great misfortune) ●

• Le tremblement de terre fut un véritable désastre pour la région. (The earthquake was a real disaster for the region.)

disaster (noun [m]: crushing military defeat) ●

• La bataille de Waterloo représenta un désastre pour Napoléon. (The Battle of Waterloo represented a disaster for Napoleon.)

calamity, disaster, fiasco, flop (noun [m]: distressing or regrettable thing) ●

• Son premier concert solo fut un désastre complet. (His first solo concert was a complete fiasco.)

disaster, catastrophe (noun [m]: complete failure, ruin) ●

• L’effondrement boursier a été un désastre économique. (The stock market collapse was an economic disaster.)

joli [ʒɔli]

pretty, lovely, nice, attractive (adjective: cute, pretty) ●

• Elle porte une jolie robe bleue ce soir. (She’s wearing a pretty blue dress tonight.)

tidy (adjective: substantial sum of money) ●

• Il a gagné une jolie somme au casino hier soir. (He won a tidy sum at the casino last night.)

honey, darling, lovely (noun [m]: informal term of endearment) ●

• Alors mon joli, qu’est-ce que tu veux boire ? (So my lovely, what would you like to drink?)

promouvoir [pʁɔmuvwaʁ]

promote (transitive verb: nominate to a higher position) ●

• Elle a été promue au poste de directrice régionale. (She was promoted to the position of regional director.)

promote (transitive verb: put forward, publicize) ●

• L’entreprise cherche à promouvoir ses nouveaux services écologiques. (The company is seeking to promote its new ecological services.)

écho [eko]

echo, reverberation (noun [m]: sound that reverberates) ●

• On entend l’écho de nos voix dans cette grotte. (You can hear the echo of our voices in this cave.)

rumour, rumor (noun [m]: information, news) ●

• J’ai eu des échos positifs concernant la nouvelle politique. (I’ve heard positive rumours about the new policy.)

echo, reflection (noun [m]: figurative reminder of something) ●

• Ce roman contient un écho des événements historiques de l’époque. (This novel contains an echo of the historical events of the period.)

fusion [fyzjɔ̃]

merger (noun [f]: merging of companies) ●

• La fusion des deux banques créera un géant financier. (The merger of the two banks will create a financial giant.)

molten (noun [f]: transformation to liquid state) ●

• Le métal en fusion sera versé dans les moules. (The molten metal will be poured into the moulds.)

innovation [inɔvasjɔ̃]

innovation (noun [f]: action of innovating) ●

• L’innovation technologique est essentielle pour rester compétitif. (Technological innovation is essential to remain competitive.)

invention, innovation (noun [f]: creation, invention) ●

• Cette innovation a révolutionné l’industrie automobile. (This invention revolutionized the automotive industry.)

sélection [selɛksjɔ̃]

selection, choosing (noun [f]: act of choosing) ●

• La sélection des candidats prendra plusieurs semaines. (The selection of candidates will take several weeks.)

selection, range, collection (noun [f]: chosen set) ●

• Le magasin offre une large sélection de vins français. (The shop offers a wide selection of French wines.)

selection (noun [f]: biology – choice made by nature) ●

• La sélection naturelle favorise les individus les mieux adaptés. (Natural selection favors the best-adapted individuals.)

confondre [kɔ̃fɔ̃dʁ]

get mixed up, confuse, mistake, conflate (transitive verb: fail to distinguish) ●

• Je confonds toujours ces deux mots similaires. (I always get these two similar words mixed up.)

foil, thwart, confound (transitive verb: unmask, expose) ●

• Les preuves ont confondu le suspect dans son mensonge. (The evidence confounded the suspect in his lie.)

baffle, confound, throw (transitive verb: disconcert, bewilder) ●

• Sa réaction inattendue a confondu tout le monde. (His unexpected reaction baffled everyone.)

combine (transitive verb: merge, fuse together) ●

• Nous pourrions confondre ces deux projets pour économiser du temps. (We could combine these two projects to save time.)

become mixed up, become confused, no longer be clear (reflexive verb: no longer distinguish) ●

• Les souvenirs de mon enfance se confondent avec le temps. (Memories of my childhood become mixed up over time.)

blend into each other, blend, merge (reflexive verb: mix together) ●

• À l’horizon, le ciel et la mer se confondent parfaitement. (On the horizon, the sky and sea blend perfectly into each other.)

merge into, blend into (reflexive verb: mix with something) ●

• La forêt se confond avec les montagnes au loin. (The forest blends into the mountains in the distance.)

coincide, be equal (reflexive verb: geometry – overlap, be identical) ●

• Dans ce cas particulier, les deux droites se confondent exactement. (In this particular case, the two lines coincide exactly.)

honnête [ɔnɛt]

honest, respectable, law-abiding, decent (adjective: upright, virtuous) ●

• C’est un commerçant honnête qui ne trompe jamais ses clients. (He’s an honest merchant who never cheats his customers.)

honest (adjective: who says what they think, in good faith) ●

• Soyez honnête avec moi, que pensez-vous vraiment de mon projet ? (Be honest with me, what do you really think of my project?)

honest with, straight with, level with (adjective: who tells someone the truth) ●

• Je préfère être honnête avec toi plutôt que de te mentir. (I prefer to be honest with you rather than lie to you.)

honest (adjective: correct with money) ●

• Ce garagiste est honnête et ne facture jamais trop cher. (This mechanic is honest and never overcharges.)

fair, decent (adjective: fair price) ●

• Le prix proposé me paraît honnête pour ce type de service. (The proposed price seems fair to me for this type of service.)

decent, fair (adjective: acceptable, reasonable) ●

• Il a obtenu des résultats honnêtes sans être exceptionnels. (He achieved decent results without being exceptional.)

tournant [tuʁnɑ̃]

corner, bend (noun [m]: change of direction in a road) ●

• Ralentis en approchant du tournant, la route est glissante. (Slow down as you approach the bend, the road is slippery.)

turning point (noun [m]: decisive moment) ●

• Cette décision représente un tournant majeur dans ma carrière. (This decision represents a major turning point in my career.)

automobile [otɔmɔbil]

car (noun [f]: motor vehicle) ●

• Ma nouvelle automobile consomme très peu d’essence. (My new car uses very little gas.)

self-propelled (adjective: capable of moving independently) ●

• Les véhicules automobiles doivent respecter le code de la route. (Self-propelled vehicles must comply with traffic laws.)

collectivité [kɔlɛktivite]

community (noun [f]: group of people) ●

• La collectivité locale a décidé de construire une nouvelle bibliothèque. (The local community decided to build a new library.)

record [ʁəkɔʁ]

record (noun [m]: new performance) ●

• L’athlète a établi un nouveau record du monde hier soir. (The athlete set a new world record last night.)

record (noun [m]: level not yet reached) ●

• Les ventes ont atteint des records ce trimestre. (Sales reached record levels this quarter.)

record (adjective: exceptional) ●

• L’équipe a terminé le projet en un délai record. (The team finished the project in record time.)

excessif [ɛksɛsif]

excessive (adjective: too much) ●

• Le prix demandé pour cette maison me semble excessif. (The asking price for this house seems excessive to me.)

excessive, over the top (adjective: doing too much) ●

• Son enthousiasme peut parfois paraître excessif. (His enthusiasm can sometimes seem over the top.)

ridicule [ʁidikyl]

ridiculous (adjective: grotesque) ●

• Il portait un chapeau tout à fait ridicule. (He was wearing a completely ridiculous hat.)

absurd (adjective: nonsensical) ●

• Cette explication est ridicule, personne ne va la croire. (This explanation is absurd, nobody will believe it.)

ridiculously low, negligible (adjective: minimal) ●

• Ils vendent ces antiquités à un prix ridicule. (They are selling these antiques at a ridiculously low price.)

be ridiculous (noun [m]: being ridiculous) ●

• Il ne craint pas le ridicule quand il monte sur scène. (He isn’t afraid of being ridiculous when he goes on stage.)

modalité [mɔdalite]

terms and conditions, ways and means (noun [f]: condition) ●

• Les modalités de paiement sont indiquées au dos du contrat. (The terms and conditions of payment are indicated on the back of the contract.)

modality, manner (noun [f]: modification of meaning) ●

• En linguistique, la modalité exprime l’attitude du locuteur. (In linguistics, modality expresses the speaker’s attitude.)

paquet [pakɛ]

parcel, package (noun [m]: wrapped object for transport) ●

• J’ai reçu un paquet de ma famille aujourd’hui. (I received a package from my family today.)

packet, pack (noun [m]: product packaging) ●

• Peux-tu acheter un paquet de biscuits au supermarché? (Can you buy a packet of cookies at the supermarket?)

packet, pack (noun [m]: packaged goods) ●

• Elle a acheté trois paquets de café ce matin. (She bought three packets of coffee this morning.)

mass, pile (noun [m]: collection of similar items) ●

• J’ai trouvé un paquet de vieilles lettres dans le grenier. (I found a pile of old letters in the attic.)

mass, lump (noun [m]: shapeless mass of something) ●

• Après la pluie, il y avait des paquets de boue partout. (After the rain, there were lumps of mud everywhere.)

a lot of, loads of (noun [m]: large quantity of something) ●

• J’ai un paquet de choses à finir avant demain. (I have loads of things to finish before tomorrow.)

fondation [fɔ̃dasjɔ̃]

foundation, founding (noun [f]: creation) ●

• La fondation de l’université remonte au quinzième siècle. (The founding of the university dates back to the fifteenth century.)

foundation, fund (noun [f]: institution with specific purpose) ●

• Cette fondation soutient la recherche médicale depuis vingt ans. (This foundation has been supporting medical research for twenty years.)

foundations, footings (noun [f] pl: base of building) ●

• Les ouvriers ont commencé à couler les fondations hier matin. (The workers started pouring the foundations yesterday morning.)

terroriste [tɛʁɔʁist]

terrorist (adjective: relating to terrorism) ●

• La police a déjoué une attaque terroriste ce matin. (The police foiled a terrorist attack this morning.)

terrorist (noun [m/f]: supporter of terrorist acts) ●

• Les terroristes ont été arrêtés à la frontière. (The terrorists were arrested at the border.)

retrait [ʁətʁɛ]

withdrawal (noun [m]: leaving a place) ●

• Le président a annoncé le retrait des troupes du territoire. (The president announced the withdrawal of troops from the territory.)

withdrawal (noun [m]: money from account) ●

• Je dois faire un retrait de deux cents euros à la banque. (I need to make a withdrawal of two hundred euros at the bank.)

withdrawal, removal (noun [m]: confiscation) ●

• Le retrait de son passeport l’empêche de voyager à l’étranger. (The withdrawal of his passport prevents him from traveling abroad.)

withdrawal (noun [m]: cancellation of participation) ●

• Le retrait du candidat a surpris tout le monde. (The candidate’s withdrawal surprised everyone.)

pulling out, withdrawal (noun [m]: contraceptive method) ●

• Le retrait n’est pas une méthode contraceptive fiable. (Pulling out is not a reliable contraceptive method.)

organe

organ (noun [m]: anatomy) ●

• Le cœur est l’organe le plus vital du corps humain. (The heart is the most vital organ of the human body.)

system, mechanism (noun [m]: mechanical part) ●

• L’organe de freinage de cette voiture doit être remplacé. (The braking system of this car must be replaced.)

voice (noun [m]: figurative) ●

• Le chanteur d’opéra possède un organe impressionnant. (The opera singer has an impressive voice.)

protocole

protocol (noun [m]: procedure) ●

• Les médecins doivent suivre un protocole strict pour cette opération. (Doctors must follow a strict protocol for this operation.)

protocol, procedure (noun [m]: medical care) ●

• Le protocole de traitement a été mis à jour cette année. (The treatment protocol was updated this year.)

protocol (noun [m]: computing) ●

• Ce site utilise le protocole HTTPS pour sécuriser les données. (This site uses HTTPS protocol to secure data.)

protocol (noun [m]: ceremonial) ●

• Le protocole diplomatique exige que l’on respecte certaines règles. (Diplomatic protocol requires that certain rules be followed.)

apparition

appearance, first appearance, arrival, outbreak (noun [f]: beginning) ●

• L’apparition des premières fleurs annonce le printemps. (The appearance of the first flowers announces spring.)

appearance (noun [f]: unexpected arrival) ●

• Son apparition à la fête a surpris tout le monde. (His appearance at the party surprised everyone.)

apparition, ghost, spectre, specter (noun [f]: supernatural manifestation) ●

• Les villageois prétendent avoir vu une apparition dans le vieux château. (The villagers claim to have seen an apparition in the old castle.)

gain

gain, saving (noun [m]: recovery) ●

• Le nouveau système permet un gain de temps considérable. (The new system allows for a considerable time saving.)

profit (noun [m]: financial benefit) ●

• L’entreprise a réalisé un gain important cette année. (The company made a significant profit this year.)

benefit (noun [m]: advantage) ●

• Quel gain pouvons-nous retirer de ce nouveau partenariat? (What benefit can we get from this new partnership?)

profit, gain, amassing money, making money, earnings (noun [m]: act of making money) ●

• Il est motivé uniquement par l’appât du gain. (He is motivated solely by the lure of profit.)

winning, win (noun [m]: favorable outcome) ●

• Le gain du match a été célébré par toute l’équipe. (The team celebrated winning the match.)

écran

screen (noun [m]: display device) ●

• Je regarde souvent des films sur l’écran de mon ordinateur. (I often watch movies on my computer screen.)

sonner

ring (intransitive verb: emit ringing) ●

• Mon téléphone sonne sans arrêt ce matin. (My phone is ringing non-stop this morning.)

ring (intransitive verb: use doorbell) ●

• Quelqu’un a sonné à la porte, peux-tu ouvrir? (Someone rang at the door, can you answer it?)

sound, strike (transitive verb: announce by ringing) ●

• La cloche de l’église sonne midi tous les jours. (The church bell strikes noon every day.)

call for, send for, ring for (transitive verb: summon with bell) ●

• La malade a sonné l’infirmière pour avoir de l’eau. (The patient rang for the nurse to get some water.)

stun, knock for six (transitive verb: informal – daze) ●

• Le coup sur la tête l’a complètement sonné. (The blow to the head completely stunned him.)

protester

protest, oppose (intransitive verb: oppose) ●

• Les citoyens protestent contre la nouvelle loi. (Citizens are protesting against the new law.)

protest, demonstrate (intransitive verb: demonstrate publicly) ●

• Des milliers de personnes ont protesté dans les rues hier. (Thousands of people protested in the streets yesterday.)

protest (intransitive verb: complain) ●

• Mon fils a protesté quand je lui ai dit d’éteindre la télé. (My son protested when I told him to turn off the TV.)

profess, argue, invoke (transitive verb indirect: assert) ●

• L’accusé a protesté de son innocence devant le tribunal. (The accused professed his innocence before the court.)

curieux

curious, interested in, keen on (adjective: wanting to know) ●

• Les enfants sont naturellement curieux du monde qui les entoure. (Children are naturally curious about the world around them.)

curious, strange, bizarre (adjective: strange) ●

• C’est curieux qu’il ne soit pas encore arrivé. (It’s strange that he hasn’t arrived yet.)

curious person (noun [m/f]: one who wants to know) ●

• Ma petite sœur est une curieuse qui pose toujours mille questions. (My little sister is a curious person who always asks a thousand questions.)

curious, indiscreet, nosey, nosy (adjective: indiscreet) ●

• Ne sois pas si curieux, cela ne te regarde pas! (Don’t be so nosy, it’s none of your business!)

curious person, nosy person, nosey person, rubbernecker, curtain-twitcher (noun [m/f]: busybody) ●

• Les curieux se sont rassemblés autour de l’accident. (Rubberneckers gathered around the accident.)

effacer

erase, wipe away, wipe off (transitive verb: make disappear) ●

• Il faut effacer cette erreur du tableau. (We need to erase this mistake from the board.)

clean, wipe (transitive verb: clean) ●

• Peux-tu effacer le tableau avant le prochain cours? (Can you clean the board before the next class?)

delete (transitive verb: computing – remove) ●

• J’ai accidentellement effacé tous mes emails. (I accidentally deleted all my emails.)

fade (reflexive verb: become faint) ●

• Les couleurs de cette peinture se sont effacées avec le temps. (The colors of this painting have faded over time.)

débuter

start, begin, commence (intransitive verb: commence) ●

• Le spectacle débute à vingt heures précises. (The show starts at eight o’clock sharp.)

begin, debut, make one’s début, commence, start out (intransitive verb: make one’s debut) ●

• Elle a débuté comme assistante avant de devenir directrice. (She started out as an assistant before becoming director.)

begin, begin doing, start doing, commence (transitive verb: informal – start) ●

• Mon fils débutera ses études universitaires en septembre. (My son will begin his university studies in September.)

creuser [kʀøze]

dig (intransitive verb: make a hole) ●

• Les ouvriers creusent depuis ce matin pour poser les fondations. (The workers have been digging since this morning to lay the foundations.)

dig, hollow out (transitive verb: make a hole in something) ●

• Le chien a creusé un trou dans le jardin pour enterrer son os. (The dog dug a hole in the garden to bury his bone.)

furrow, hollow, let sag (transitive verb: make concave) ●

• Les années de labeur ont creusé son visage de rides profondes. (Years of toil have furrowed his face with deep wrinkles.)

grow hollow, grow gaunt (reflexive verb: become hollow) ●

• Après des semaines de maladie, ses joues se sont creusées. (After weeks of illness, his cheeks have grown hollow.)

grow wider, grow larger, increase (reflexive verb: widen) ●

• L’écart entre les deux coureurs se creuse à chaque kilomètre. (The gap between the two runners grows wider with each kilometer.)

worsen, compound (transitive verb: aggravate, figurative) ●

• Les nouvelles dépenses creusent le déficit budgétaire. (The new expenditures are worsening the budget deficit.)

look deeper into, look into more deeply (transitive verb: examine thoroughly, figurative) ●

• Il faudrait creuser cette hypothèse avant de tirer des conclusions. (We should look deeper into this hypothesis before drawing conclusions.)

whet the appetite, make hungry (intransitive verb: cause hunger, informal) ●

• Cette randonnée en montagne, ça creuse vraiment ! (This mountain hike really whets the appetite!)

overtax yourself (reflexive verb: strain one’s mind, informal) ●

• Ne te creuse pas trop pour cette petite décision. (Don’t overtax yourself for this small decision.)

allusion [alyzjɔ̃]

allusion, hint, veiled reference (noun [f]: discreetly suggested idea) ●

• Le journaliste a fait une allusion à peine voilée au scandale politique. (The journalist made a barely veiled allusion to the political scandal.)

lancement [lɑ̃smɑ̃]

launch (noun [m]: spacecraft propulsion) ●

• Le lancement de la fusée est prévu pour demain à l’aube. (The launch of the rocket is scheduled for tomorrow at dawn.)

launch (noun [m]: product promotion, figurative) ●

• Le lancement de notre nouvelle application a généré beaucoup d’intérêt. (The launch of our new application generated a lot of interest.)

introduction, intro (noun [m]: TV or radio segment) ●

• Le présentateur doit retravailler ses lancements pour le journal télévisé. (The presenter needs to rework his intros for the television news.)

porteur [pɔʀtœʀ]

porter, carrier, wearer (noun [m/f]: person who carries) ●

• Les porteurs de bagages attendent les voyageurs à la sortie du train. (The baggage porters are waiting for travelers at the train exit.)

porter, bellboy, bellhop (noun [m]: hotel attendant) ●

• Le porteur de l’hôtel a monté nos valises dans la chambre. (The hotel porter brought our suitcases up to the room.)

supporting, load-bearing (adjective: structural support) ●

• Attention, ce mur est porteur et ne peut pas être démoli. (Be careful, this wall is load-bearing and cannot be demolished.)

booming, flourishing, high-growth, buoyant (adjective: promising) ●

• Les énergies renouvelables représentent un secteur porteur pour l’avenir. (Renewable energies represent a booming sector for the future.)

shareholder, holder (noun [m]: financial title owner) ●

• Les petits porteurs ont été les premiers à vendre leurs actions. (Small shareholders were the first to sell their shares.)

préalable [pʀealablə]

preliminary, preceding, prior to (adjective: done first) ●

• Une autorisation préalable est nécessaire avant de commencer les travaux. (Prior authorization is necessary before starting the work.)

precondition, prerequisite (noun [m]: requirement before agreement) ●

• La libération des otages est un préalable à toute négociation. (The release of hostages is a precondition for any negotiation.)

programmer [pʀɔgʀame]

establish, set, organize, program (transitive verb: arrange in advance) ●

• Nous avons programmé la réunion pour vendredi prochain. (We have scheduled the meeting for next Friday.)

schedule, program (transitive verb: plan a show) ●

• Le festival a programmé plusieurs concerts en plein air cet été. (The festival has scheduled several outdoor concerts this summer.)

program (transitive verb: computing, prepare) ●

• L’ingénieur a programmé le système pour s’éteindre automatiquement. (The engineer programmed the system to shut down automatically.)

program (intransitive verb: computing, write code) ●

• Elle a appris à programmer en autodidacte grâce à des tutoriels en ligne. (She learned to program self-taught through online tutorials.)

traîner [tʀɛne]

drag, lug around (transitive verb: pull something) ●

• Il a dû traîner les lourdes caisses jusqu’au camion. (He had to drag the heavy crates to the truck.)

touch, hang down to (intransitive verb: hang to the ground) ●

• Ta robe traîne par terre, fais attention de ne pas la salir. (Your dress is touching the ground; be careful not to dirty it.)

lie around (intransitive verb: not be put away) ●

• Ne laisse pas tes vêtements traîner sur le canapé. (Don’t leave your clothes lying around on the sofa.)

crawl (reflexive verb: move by crawling) ●

• Le bébé se traîne sur le tapis en essayant d’attraper son jouet. (The baby is crawling on the carpet trying to grab his toy.)

hang around, hang about (intransitive verb: wander aimlessly, informal) ●

• Les adolescents traînent devant le centre commercial après les cours. (The teenagers hang around in front of the mall after school.)

dawdle, lag behind (intransitive verb: linger) ●

• Dépêche-toi, ne traîne pas, on va être en retard ! (Hurry up, don’t dawdle, we’re going to be late!)

drag around, have (transitive verb: carry with oneself) ●

• Elle traîne toujours un énorme sac à main rempli de choses inutiles. (She always drags around an enormous handbag filled with useless things.)

crawl, go at a snail’s pace (reflexive verb: move slowly, figurative) ●

• Le projet se traîne depuis des mois sans avancée significative. (The project has been crawling along for months without significant progress.)

domicile [dɔmisil]

home, abode, dwelling, domicile, address, place of residence (noun [m]: place of residence) ●

• Veuillez indiquer votre domicile actuel sur le formulaire. (Please indicate your current address on the form.)

oiseau [wazo]

bird (noun [m]: winged animal) ●

• Un oiseau s’est posé sur la branche et a commencé à chanter. (A bird landed on the branch and started to sing.)

joker, muppet (noun [m]: individual, pejorative) ●

• Méfie-toi de cet oiseau, il n’est pas digne de confiance. (Watch out for this joker; he’s not trustworthy.)

quarante [kaʀɑ̃t]

forty (adjective: two times twenty) ●

• Il faut quarante minutes pour aller au bureau en transport en commun. (It takes forty minutes to get to the office by public transport.)

forty (noun [m]: cardinal number) ●

• Le quarante est un nombre pair divisible par dix. (Forty is an even number divisible by ten.)

sacrifice [sakʀifis]

sacrifice (noun [m]: ritual killing) ●

• Les Aztèques offraient des sacrifices humains à leurs divinités. (The Aztecs offered human sacrifices to their deities.)

sacrifice, sacrificing (noun [m]: voluntary renunciation, figurative) ●

• Le sacrifice de ses économies lui a permis de créer son entreprise. (The sacrifice of his savings allowed him to start his business.)

barrière [baʀjɛʀ]

barrier, gate (noun [f]: bar closing a passage) ●

• La barrière du passage à niveau s’abaisse quand un train approche. (The level crossing barrier lowers when a train approaches.)

barrier (noun [f]: natural obstacle, figurative) ●

• Les Alpes constituent une barrière naturelle entre la France et l’Italie. (The Alps form a natural barrier between France and Italy.)

barrier, bar, obstacle (noun [f]: separation, figurative) ●

• L’âge n’a jamais été une barrière à leur amitié. (Age has never been a barrier to their friendship.)

barrier (noun [f]: bothersome difference, figurative) ●

• Les barrières linguistiques compliquent souvent les négociations internationales. (Language barriers often complicate international negotiations.)

biais [bjɛ]

way, means (noun [m]: stratagem, formal) ●

• Elle a trouvé un biais pour contourner les restrictions administratives. (She found a way to get around the administrative restrictions.)

feuille [fœj]

leaf (noun [f]: plant extremity) ●

• Les feuilles des arbres commencent à jaunir dès le mois de septembre. (Tree leaves start to turn yellow from September.)

sheet (noun [f]: piece of paper) ●

• L’enseignant a distribué une feuille d’exercices à chaque élève. (The teacher handed out an exercise sheet to each student.)

délégation [delegasjɔ̃]

delegation, commission (noun [f]: group of people) ●

• Une délégation de diplomates est arrivée ce matin pour les négociations. (A delegation of diplomats arrived this morning for the negotiations.)

delegation, transfer (noun [f]: transfer of authority or power) ●

• Le directeur a accordé une délégation de signature à son adjoint. (The director granted a delegation of signing authority to his deputy.)

épuiser [epɥize]

wear out, drain, exhaust (transitive verb: tire someone) ●

• Cette longue randonnée en montagne nous a complètement épuisés. (This long mountain hike completely wore us out.)

drain, run dry, empty (transitive verb: deplete natural resources) ●

• L’irrigation intensive a épuisé les nappes phréatiques de la région. (Intensive irrigation has drained the region’s groundwater.)

run through, use up, run out of (transitive verb: deplete stocks) ●

• Le magasin a épuisé ses réserves de masques en quelques heures. (The store ran through its stock of masks in a few hours.)

run out of, exhaust (transitive verb: be out of) ●

• Nous avons épuisé toutes les solutions possibles sans trouver de réponse. (We exhausted all possible solutions without finding an answer.)

exhaust (transitive verb: treat a subject completely) ●

• Les experts ont épuisé le sujet après trois heures de discussion. (The experts exhausted the subject after three hours of discussion.)

wear yourself out, exhaust yourself (reflexive verb: lose energy) ●

• Ne t’épuise pas à vouloir tout faire en une seule journée. (Don’t wear yourself out trying to do everything in one day.)

wear yourself out doing, waste your time doing (reflexive verb: strive to do something) ●

• Il s’épuise à répéter les mêmes consignes sans être écouté. (He wears himself out repeating the same instructions without being listened to.)

run out, be exhausted (reflexive verb: resource disappearing) ●

• Les réserves de charbon finiront par s’épuiser d’ici quelques décennies. (Coal reserves will eventually run out within a few decades.)

sell out, run out (reflexive verb: stock diminishing) ●

• Les billets pour le concert se sont épuisés en moins d’une heure. (Tickets for the concert sold out in less than an hour.)

champion [ʃɑ̃pjɔ̃]

champion, winner (noun [m/f]: victor) ●

• La championne de tennis a remporté son dixième titre cette année. (The tennis champion won her tenth title this year.)

champion of, defender of (noun [m/f]: advocate) ●

• Cette avocate est une championne des droits de l’homme. (This lawyer is a champion of human rights.)

great, excellent, the best (adjective: remarkable, informal) ●

• Pour inventer des excuses, mon frère est vraiment champion ! (When it comes to making up excuses, my brother is really the best!)

librement [libʀəmɑ̃]

freely, at liberty (adverb: without restriction) ●

• Les citoyens peuvent circuler librement au sein de l’espace Schengen. (Citizens can move freely within the Schengen area.)

freely, frankly (adverb: openly) ●

• Il m’a parlé librement de ses difficultés financières. (He spoke freely to me about his financial difficulties.)

freely (adverb: in complete freedom) ●

• Les membres du jury pourront voter librement sans pression extérieure. (Jury members will be able to vote freely without outside pressure.)

congé [kɔ̃ʒe]

time off, holiday, vacation (noun [m]: leave from work) ●

• Elle a pris deux semaines de congé pour partir en voyage. (She took two weeks off to go on a trip.)

leave, notice (noun [m]: dismissal) ●

• Le propriétaire lui a donné congé et il doit quitter l’appartement. (The landlord gave him notice and he must leave the apartment.)

taxe [taks]

tax, duty, fee (noun [f]: levy) ●

• Le gouvernement envisage d’augmenter la taxe sur les carburants. (The government is considering increasing the tax on fuel.)

onze

eleven (adjective: number, quantity 11) ●

• Notre équipe de football compte onze joueurs sur le terrain. (Our football team has eleven players on the pitch.)

eleven (noun [m]: ordinal position) ●

• Le chapitre onze de ce roman est particulièrement captivant. (Chapter eleven of this novel is particularly captivating.)

téléphoner

call, phone (transitive verb: contact someone via telephone) ●

• J’ai oublié de téléphoner à ma mère pour son anniversaire. (I forgot to call my mother for her birthday.)

phone each other, telephone each other, call each other (reflexive verb: call one another) ●

• Les deux amis se téléphonent chaque dimanche soir. (The two friends call each other every Sunday evening.)

call to announce, call to notify (transitive verb: inform by telephone) ●

• Elle a téléphoné son retard au bureau avant de partir. (She called to notify the office of her delay before leaving.)

serrer [seʀe]

squeeze, grip, compress (transitive verb: apply pressure) ●

• Elle serre l’éponge pour en extraire toute l’eau. (She squeezes the sponge to extract all the water.)

secure, grip (transitive verb: hold firmly in place) ●

• L’ouvrier serre la pièce dans l’étau avant de la percer. (The worker secures the piece in the vice before drilling it.)

tighten, tighten up (transitive verb: make more secure) ●

• N’oublie pas de serrer les boulons après avoir changé la roue. (Don’t forget to tighten the bolts after changing the wheel.)

grip, clench, grasp (transitive verb: close hand around something) ●

• Il serre les poings de colère en entendant la nouvelle. (He clenches his fists in anger upon hearing the news.)

hold, clutch, clasp (transitive verb: embrace) ●

• La grand-mère serre ses petits-enfants dans ses bras à chaque visite. (The grandmother holds her grandchildren in her arms at every visit.)

be tight, be too tight (intransitive verb: clothing that compresses) ●

• Cette ceinture me serre, je vais la desserrer d’un cran. (This belt is too tight; I’ll loosen it by one notch.)

squeeze, squeeze yourself (reflexive verb: compress your body) ●

• Les passagers doivent se serrer pour laisser monter d’autres voyageurs. (The passengers must squeeze together to let other travellers get on.)

cuddle up to (reflexive verb: nestle close) ●

• Le chat aime se serrer contre son maître le soir. (The cat likes to cuddle up to its owner in the evening.)

tighten, contract, clench (reflexive verb: muscles contracting) ●

• Son estomac se serre chaque fois qu’il pense à l’examen. (His stomach tightens every time he thinks about the exam.)

caractériser

be characteristic of, be typical of, characterize (transitive verb: define) ●

• La générosité caractérise cette famille depuis des générations. (Generosity has been characteristic of this family for generations.)

be characterized by, be distinguished by (reflexive verb: be distinguished) ●

• Ce style architectural se caractérise par ses lignes épurées. (This architectural style is characterized by its clean lines.)

préparation

preparation, readying (noun [f]: action of preparing) ●

• La préparation du voyage nous a pris plusieurs semaines. (The preparation of the trip took us several weeks.)

preparation, making, mix, mixture (noun [f]: something prepared) ●

• Versez la préparation dans le moule beurré et enfournez. (Pour the mixture into the greased mould and bake.)

preparation (noun [f]: pharmaceutical compound) ●

• Le pharmacien a réalisé une préparation sur mesure pour soulager ses douleurs. (The pharmacist created a custom preparation to relieve his pain.)

inverse

opposite, the other (adjective: opposite direction) ●

• Les voitures roulaient en sens inverse sur l’autoroute. (The cars were travelling in the opposite direction on the motorway.)

the opposite, the reverse, the other way around (noun [m]: contrary) ●

• Tu crois que je t’évite, mais c’est plutôt l’inverse. (You think I’m avoiding you, but it’s actually the opposite.)

intituler

title, entitle, call, name (transitive verb: give a title to a work) ●

• L’auteur a décidé d’intituler son roman « Les Ombres du passé ». (The author decided to title his novel ‘Shadows of the Past’.)

be called, be entitled, be titled (reflexive verb: have as title) ●

• Le premier épisode s’intitule « Le commencement ». (The first episode is entitled ‘The Beginning’.)

call yourself, style yourself (reflexive verb: give yourself a title) ●

• Il s’intitule « expert en stratégie », mais personne ne sait d’où vient ce titre. (He styles himself an ‘expert in strategy’, but nobody knows where that title comes from.)

possession

possession, having (noun [f]: state of having something) ●

• La possession de ce document est essentielle pour compléter le dossier. (Having this document is essential to complete the file.)

possession, ownership, holding (noun [f]: legal holding) ●

• La possession de ces terres remonte à plusieurs générations. (Ownership of this land goes back several generations.)

possession (noun [f]: enjoyment of faculties) ●

• Malgré son âge, il reste en pleine possession de ses moyens intellectuels. (Despite his age, he remains in full possession of his intellectual faculties.)

possession, colony (noun [f]: colonial territory) ●

• Cette île était autrefois une possession britannique. (This island was once a British possession.)

possession (noun [f]: demonic control) ●

• Le film raconte l’histoire d’une possession démoniaque dans un village isolé. (The film tells the story of a demonic possession in an isolated village.)

rejet

rejection, turning down (noun [m]: refusal) ●

• Le rejet de sa candidature l’a profondément déçu. (The rejection of his application deeply disappointed him.)

emission (noun [m]: discharge) ●

• Le rejet de polluants dans la rivière est strictement interdit. (The emission of pollutants into the river is strictly prohibited.)

throw up (noun [m]: expulsion by natural force) ●

• Le rejet des débris par la mer a souillé toute la plage. (The sea threw up debris and fouled the entire beach.)

rejection (noun [m]: medical non-assimilation) ●

• Les médecins surveillent attentivement tout signe de rejet après la transplantation. (Doctors carefully monitor any sign of rejection after the transplant.)

shoot (noun [m]: botany, new growth) ●

• De nombreux rejets poussent au pied de ce vieux chêne. (Many shoots are growing at the base of this old oak tree.)

enseignant

teacher (noun [m/f]: person who teaches) ●

• L’enseignant a préparé une leçon interactive pour captiver ses élèves. (The teacher prepared an interactive lesson to engage his students.)

teaching (adjective: relating to instruction) ●

• Le personnel enseignant de cette école est très qualifié. (The teaching staff at this school is highly qualified.)

avérer [a.ve.ʁe]

prove to be [sth], turn out to be [sth] (reflexive verb: be revealed as) ●

• Les rumeurs se sont avérées fondées après l’enquête officielle. (The rumours proved to be well-founded after the official investigation.)

papa [pa.pa]

father, dad, daddy (noun [m]: informal term for father) ●

• Mon papa m’accompagne à l’école tous les matins. (My dad takes me to school every morning.)

Dad, Daddy (interjection: affectionate form of address) ●

• Papa, est-ce qu’on peut aller au parc aujourd’hui ? (Dad, can we go to the park today?)

collaborateur [kɔ.la.bɔ.ʁa.tœʁ]

colleague, co-worker, associate, partner, collaborator (noun [m]: person who works with someone) ●

• Elle a présenté son collaborateur aux membres du conseil d’administration. (She introduced her colleague to the board members.)

employee (noun [m]: worker in a company) ●

• L’entreprise compte plus de deux cents collaborateurs dans ses bureaux parisiens. (The company has more than two hundred employees in its Paris offices.)

collaborator (noun [m]: Second World War supporter of Germans) ●

• Après la guerre, de nombreux collaborateurs ont été jugés pour trahison. (After the war, many collaborators were tried for treason.)

collaborator (noun [m]: supporter of cooperation with occupiers) ●

• Les collaborateurs étaient souvent méprisés par leurs concitoyens. (Collaborators were often despised by their fellow citizens.)

gêner [ʒɛ.ne]

disturb, bother (transitive verb: cause inconvenience) ●

• Je ne veux pas te gêner pendant ton travail. (I don’t want to disturb you while you’re working.)

embarrass, make [sb] uncomfortable (transitive verb: cause discomfort) ●

• Sa question directe a visiblement gêné le candidat. (His direct question clearly embarrassed the candidate.)

annoy, get in the way (transitive verb: cause physical discomfort) ●

• Ce collier me gêne, il est trop serré. (This necklace annoys me; it’s too tight.)

obstruct, interfere with [sth] (transitive verb: impede) ●

• Un camion mal garé gênait la circulation sur l’avenue principale. (A badly parked truck was obstructing traffic on the main avenue.)

be in each other’s way (reflexive verb: inconvenience oneself mutually) ●

• Dans ce petit appartement, nous nous gênons constamment. (In this small flat, we’re constantly in each other’s way.)

not hesitate to do [sth] (verb phrase: feel free to act) ●

• Il ne s’est pas gêné pour critiquer ouvertement la décision du directeur. (He didn’t hesitate to openly criticize the director’s decision.)

technicien [tɛk.ni.sjɛ̃]

technician (noun [m]: professional in a technical field) ●

• Le technicien viendra réparer votre connexion internet demain matin. (The technician will come to fix your internet connection tomorrow morning.)

expert, skilled worker (noun [m]: someone who has mastered a technique) ●

• Ce plombier est un excellent technicien qui connaît parfaitement son métier. (This plumber is an excellent expert who knows his trade perfectly.)

technician, laboratory worker (noun [m]: grade before engineer) ●

• Après trois ans comme technicien, il espère obtenir un poste d’ingénieur. (After three years as a technician, he hopes to get an engineer position.)

technical (adjective: relating to technique) ●

• Son approche technicienne du problème a permis de trouver une solution rapide. (His technical approach to the problem allowed for a quick solution.)

cycle [sikl]

cycle, rotation (noun [m]: repetition of phenomena) ●

• Le cycle des marées influence considérablement la vie marine côtière. (The tidal cycle considerably influences coastal marine life.)

cycle (noun [m]: process of transformation) ●

• Le cycle de l’eau comprend l’évaporation, la condensation et les précipitations. (The water cycle includes evaporation, condensation, and precipitation.)

season (noun [m]: defined period) ●

• Le cycle des admissions universitaires commence en janvier. (The university admissions season begins in January.)

accumuler [a.ky.my.le]

pile [sth] up, accumulate (transitive verb: stack up) ●

• Elle accumule les livres sur son bureau sans jamais les ranger. (She piles up books on her desk without ever tidying them.)

hoard, amass, collect, gather, save (transitive verb: build up reserves) ●

• Il a accumulé une fortune considérable au cours de sa carrière. (He amassed a considerable fortune over his career.)

pile up, build up, mount up (reflexive verb: become stacked) ●

• Les factures impayées s’accumulent sur la table de la cuisine. (Unpaid bills are piling up on the kitchen table.)

make a string of [sth], make a series of [sth] (transitive verb: amass in large numbers) ●

• L’équipe accumule les défaites depuis le début de la saison. (The team has been making a string of defeats since the start of the season.)

sauvage [so.vaʒ]

wild (adjective: not domesticated, animal) ●

• On peut observer des animaux sauvages dans cette réserve naturelle. (You can observe wild animals in this nature reserve.)

wild, untamed, stray, feral (adjective: not tamed) ●

• Un chat sauvage vit dans notre quartier depuis plusieurs mois. (A stray cat has been living in our neighbourhood for several months.)

savage, fierce (adjective: cruel, barbaric) ●

• L’agression sauvage a choqué tous les habitants du village. (The savage attack shocked all the village inhabitants.)

primitive, uncivilized (adjective: natural, ancestral) ●

• Certaines tribus sauvages vivent encore sans contact avec le monde moderne. (Some primitive tribes still live without contact with the modern world.)

barbarian, savage, lout, yob (noun [m/f]: antisocial person) ●

• Quel sauvage ! Il a jeté ses déchets par la fenêtre de sa voiture. (What a yob! He threw his rubbish out of his car window.)

alcool [al.kɔl]

alcohol (noun [m]: intoxicating substance) ●

• La consommation excessive d’alcool est dangereuse pour la santé. (Excessive alcohol consumption is dangerous for your health.)

spirits, hard liquor (noun [m]: strong alcoholic beverage) ●

• Il préfère les alcools forts comme le whisky ou le cognac. (He prefers spirits like whisky or cognac.)

prétexte [pʁe.tɛkst]

excuse, pretext, reason (noun [m]: false reason) ●

• Il a trouvé un prétexte pour quitter la réunion plus tôt. (He found an excuse to leave the meeting early.)

excuse, cop-out, story, alibi (noun [m]: opportunity or justification) ●

• La pluie n’est pas un prétexte valable pour annuler l’événement. (Rain is not a valid excuse for cancelling the event.)

impressionnant [ɛ̃pʀesjɔnɑ̃]

impressive, stunning, awe-inspiring (adjective: striking the mind) ●

• La vue depuis le sommet de la montagne est impressionnante. (The view from the mountain summit is impressive.)

considerable, substantial, impressive (adjective: enormous, gigantic) ●

• Elle a accumulé une collection impressionnante de livres anciens. (She has accumulated a considerable collection of old books.)

scénario [senaʀjo]

scenario, storyline, screenplay, script (noun [m]: progression of a film) ●

• Le scénario de ce film a été écrit par un auteur primé. (The screenplay for this film was written by an award-winning author.)

scenario, storyline (noun [m]: hypothetical progression) ●

• Nous devons envisager plusieurs scénarios avant de prendre une décision. (We must consider several scenarios before making a decision.)

électricité [elɛktʀisite]

electricity (noun [f]: energy) ●

• La facture d’électricité a considérablement augmenté cet hiver. (The electricity bill increased considerably this winter.)

gratuit [ɡʀatɥi]

free, free of charge (adjective: no payment required) ●

• L’entrée au parc est gratuite pour les enfants de moins de cinq ans. (Admission to the park is free for children under five.)

free paper, free newspaper, freesheet (noun [m]: free newspaper) ●

• Tous les matins, je prends un gratuit à la station de métro. (Every morning, I pick up a free paper at the metro station.)

gratuitous, wanton (adjective: unjustified) ●

• Le film a été critiqué pour ses scènes de violence gratuite. (The film was criticized for its scenes of gratuitous violence.)

révolutionnaire [ʀevɔlysjɔnɛʀ]

revolutionary (adjective: of the revolution) ●

• Le mouvement révolutionnaire a changé le cours de l’histoire du pays. (The revolutionary movement changed the course of the country’s history.)

revolutionary (adjective: innovative) ●

• Cette technologie révolutionnaire pourrait transformer l’industrie automobile. (This revolutionary technology could transform the automobile industry.)

revolutionary (noun [m/f]: person who makes revolution) ●

• Les révolutionnaires ont pris d’assaut le palais présidentiel. (The revolutionaries stormed the presidential palace.)

jambe [ʒɑ̃b]

leg (noun [f]: human lower limb) ●

• Elle s’est blessée à la jambe en jouant au football. (She injured her leg playing football.)

leg (noun [f]: horse’s leg) ●

• Le vétérinaire a examiné attentivement les jambes du cheval. (The veterinarian carefully examined the horse’s legs.)

leg (noun [f]: part of trousers) ●

• La jambe gauche de mon pantalon est déchirée. (The left leg of my trousers is torn.)

insuffisant [ɛ̃syfizɑ̃]

insufficient, inadequate, not enough (adjective: not numerous enough) ●

• Les ressources allouées au projet sont insuffisantes. (The resources allocated to the project are insufficient.)

inadequate, incompetent, incapable (adjective: unfit) ●

• Son travail a été jugé insuffisant par le comité d’évaluation. (His work was judged inadequate by the evaluation committee.)

unsatisfactory (adjective: school annotation, not good enough) ●

• Le professeur a inscrit « insuffisant » sur la copie de l’élève. (The teacher wrote “unsatisfactory” on the student’s paper.)

privilège [pʀivilɛʒ]

benefit, privilege (noun [m]: advantage) ●

• Avoir accès à cette bibliothèque est un vrai privilège. (Having access to this library is a real privilege.)

gift (noun [m]: natural talent) ●

• La créativité n’est pas le privilège de quelques artistes seulement. (Creativity is not the gift of just a few artists.)

unfortunate habit (noun [m]: flaw) ●

• Tu as le privilège de toujours arriver en retard aux réunions. (You have the unfortunate habit of always arriving late to meetings.)

week-end [wikɛnd]

weekend (noun [m]: Saturday and Sunday) ●

• Nous partons à la campagne ce week-end. (We are going to the countryside this weekend.)

équivalent [ekivalɑ̃]

equivalent, equal, identical (adjective: equal) ●

• Les deux propositions ont une valeur équivalente. (The two proposals have equivalent value.)

equivalent, synonym (noun [m]: word with same meaning) ●

• Il existe un équivalent français pour ce terme anglais. (There is a French equivalent for this English term.)

regrouper [ʀəɡʀupe]

gather, assemble (transitive verb: bring together) ●

• Le professeur regroupe les élèves dans la cour avant la sortie. (The teacher gathers the students in the yard before the outing.)

gather together (transitive verb: put in same place) ●

• Elle regroupe tous ses documents importants dans un seul dossier. (She gathers all her important documents together in a single folder.)

bring together, unite (transitive verb: include, be formed of) ●

• Cette association regroupe des artistes de tous horizons. (This association brings together artists from all backgrounds.)

gather together, gather (reflexive verb: come together) ●

• Les manifestants se regroupent sur la place centrale. (The demonstrators gather together in the central square.)

invité [ɛ̃vite]

guest (noun [m/f]: person requested) ●

• Nous avons préparé cinquante places pour les invités de la cérémonie. (We prepared fifty seats for the guests at the ceremony.)

militant [militɑ̃]

militant, activist, campaigner (noun [m/f]: someone committed to a cause) ●

• Ce militant écologiste organise des marches pour le climat chaque mois. (This environmental activist organizes climate marches every month.)

campaigner, partisan, activist (noun [m/f]: active member of an organization) ●

• Les militants du parti distribuent des tracts dans le quartier. (The party activists are distributing leaflets in the neighborhood.)

activist, militant, radical (adjective: fighting for a cause) ●

• Son engagement militant lui a valu plusieurs arrestations. (His activist commitment has earned him several arrests.)

participant [paʀtisipɑ̃]

participant, player, entrant (noun [m/f]: player) ●

• Tous les participants du marathon recevront un diplôme de finisher. (All marathon participants will receive a finisher’s certificate.)

participant, attendee, delegate (noun [m/f]: person at meeting or conference) ●

• Les participants au séminaire sont priés de s’inscrire à l’avance. (Participants in the seminar are asked to register in advance.)

blessure [blesyʀ]

injury, wound (noun [f]: bodily injury) ●

• Le médecin a soigné la blessure à sa jambe après l’accident. (The doctor treated the injury to his leg after the accident.)

wound, scar, trauma (noun [f]: psychological injury, figurative) ●

• La trahison de son ami d’enfance reste une blessure profonde. (The betrayal by his childhood friend remains a deep wound.)

privilégier [pʀivileʒje]

favour, favor (transitive verb: give advantage to) ●

• Ce système de bourses privilégie les étudiants issus de milieux modestes. (This scholarship system favours students from modest backgrounds.)

make your first choice, opt for, pick (transitive verb: choose as priority) ●

• Pour perdre du poids, il vaut mieux privilégier les légumes aux féculents. (To lose weight, it’s better to opt for vegetables rather than starchy foods.)

midi [midi]

midday, noon, lunchtime (noun [m]: middle of the day) ●

• Je prends généralement une pause d’une heure à midi. (I usually take an hour’s break at midday.)

twelve o’clock, noon, midday (noun [m]: time 12:00) ●

• La réunion est prévue pour midi précis. (The meeting is scheduled for twelve o’clock sharp.)

at midday on [day] (noun [m]: at midday on a given day) ●

• Samedi midi, nous irons pique-niquer au parc. (Saturday at midday, we’ll go for a picnic in the park.)

Midi (noun [m]: south of France) ●

• Ils passent toutes leurs vacances dans le Midi, près de Marseille. (They spend all their holidays in the Midi, near Marseille.)

disque [disk]

disc, disk, record (noun [m]: music medium) ●

• Mon grand-père possède une collection impressionnante de disques vinyles. (My grandfather has an impressive collection of vinyl records.)

disc, disk (noun [m]: computing storage medium) ●

• J’ai sauvegardé tous mes fichiers sur un disque externe. (I backed up all my files on an external disk.)

disc, disk (noun [m]: flat cylinder) ●

• L’artisan utilise des disques de métal pour fabriquer ses bijoux. (The craftsman uses metal discs to make his jewelry.)

couche [kuʃ]

nappy, diaper (noun [f]: baby’s undergarment) ●

• Le bébé a besoin qu’on lui change sa couche toutes les trois heures. (The baby needs his diaper changed every three hours.)

layer, coat (noun [f]: thickness) ●

• Appliquez une couche généreuse de vernis pour protéger le bois. (Apply a generous coat of varnish to protect the wood.)

stratum, layer (noun [f]: geological layer) ●

• Les géologues ont découvert des fossiles dans une couche de roche ancienne. (The geologists discovered fossils in an ancient rock stratum.)

childbirth (noun [f] pl: situation of a woman giving birth) ●

• Au XIXe siècle, beaucoup de femmes mouraient en couches. (In the 19th century, many women died in childbirth.)

bed (noun [f]: literary, bed) ●

• Le chevalier regagna sa couche après le long voyage. (The knight returned to his bed after the long journey.)

dater [date]

date (transitive verb: put the date on) ●

• N’oubliez pas de dater et signer le formulaire avant de le soumettre. (Don’t forget to date and sign the form before submitting it.)

date (transitive verb: assign a date to) ●

• Les experts ont réussi à dater ce manuscrit au XIIe siècle. (The experts managed to date this manuscript to the 12th century.)

date back to (intransitive verb: originate from a time) ●

• Cette tradition date du règne de Louis XIV. (This tradition dates back to the reign of Louis XIV.)

be a long time ago (intransitive verb: go back a long way) ●

• Notre dernière rencontre remonte à dix ans, ça date ! (Our last meeting was ten years ago—that’s a long time ago!)

be dated (intransitive verb: be old-fashioned) ●

• Cette coiffure date un peu, tu devrais essayer quelque chose de plus moderne. (That hairstyle is a bit dated; you should try something more modern.)

regrouper [ʀəɡʀupe]

gather, assemble (transitive verb: bring together) ●

• Le professeur regroupe les élèves dans la cour avant la sortie. (The teacher gathers the students in the yard before the outing.)

gather together (transitive verb: put in same place) ●

• Elle regroupe tous ses documents importants dans un seul dossier. (She gathers all her important documents together in a single folder.)

bring together, unite (transitive verb: include, be formed of) ●

• Cette association regroupe des artistes de tous horizons. (This association brings together artists from all backgrounds.)

gather together, gather (reflexive verb: come together) ●

• Les manifestants se regroupent sur la place centrale. (The demonstrators gather together in the central square.)

invité [ɛ̃vite]

guest (noun [m/f]: person requested) ●

• Nous avons préparé cinquante places pour les invités de la cérémonie. (We prepared fifty seats for the guests at the ceremony.)

militant [militɑ̃]

militant, activist, campaigner (noun [m/f]: someone committed to a cause) ●

• Ce militant écologiste organise des marches pour le climat chaque mois. (This environmental activist organizes climate marches every month.)

campaigner, partisan, activist (noun [m/f]: active member of an organization) ●

• Les militants du parti distribuent des tracts dans le quartier. (The party activists are distributing leaflets in the neighborhood.)

activist, militant, radical (adjective: fighting for a cause) ●

• Son engagement militant lui a valu plusieurs arrestations. (His activist commitment has earned him several arrests.)

participant [paʀtisipɑ̃]

participant, player, entrant (noun [m/f]: player) ●

• Tous les participants du marathon recevront un diplôme de finisher. (All marathon participants will receive a finisher’s certificate.)

participant, attendee, delegate (noun [m/f]: person at meeting or conference) ●

• Les participants au séminaire sont priés de s’inscrire à l’avance. (Participants in the seminar are asked to register in advance.)

blessure [blesyʀ]

injury, wound (noun [f]: bodily injury) ●

• Le médecin a soigné la blessure à sa jambe après l’accident. (The doctor treated the injury to his leg after the accident.)

wound, scar, trauma (noun [f]: psychological injury, figurative) ●

• La trahison de son ami d’enfance reste une blessure profonde. (The betrayal by his childhood friend remains a deep wound.)

privilégier [pʀivileʒje]

favour, favor (transitive verb: give advantage to) ●

• Ce système de bourses privilégie les étudiants issus de milieux modestes. (This scholarship system favours students from modest backgrounds.)

make your first choice, opt for, pick (transitive verb: choose as priority) ●

• Pour perdre du poids, il vaut mieux privilégier les légumes aux féculents. (To lose weight, it’s better to opt for vegetables rather than starchy foods.)

midi [midi]

midday, noon, lunchtime (noun [m]: middle of the day) ●

• Je prends généralement une pause d’une heure à midi. (I usually take an hour’s break at midday.)

twelve o’clock, noon, midday (noun [m]: time 12:00) ●

• La réunion est prévue pour midi précis. (The meeting is scheduled for twelve o’clock sharp.)

at midday on [day] (noun [m]: at midday on a given day) ●

• Samedi midi, nous irons pique-niquer au parc. (Saturday at midday, we’ll go for a picnic in the park.)

Midi (noun [m]: south of France) ●

• Ils passent toutes leurs vacances dans le Midi, près de Marseille. (They spend all their holidays in the Midi, near Marseille.)

disque [disk]

disc, disk, record (noun [m]: music medium) ●

• Mon grand-père possède une collection impressionnante de disques vinyles. (My grandfather has an impressive collection of vinyl records.)

disc, disk (noun [m]: computing storage medium) ●

• J’ai sauvegardé tous mes fichiers sur un disque externe. (I backed up all my files on an external disk.)

disc, disk (noun [m]: flat cylinder) ●

• L’artisan utilise des disques de métal pour fabriquer ses bijoux. (The craftsman uses metal discs to make his jewelry.)

couche [kuʃ]

nappy, diaper (noun [f]: baby’s undergarment) ●

• Le bébé a besoin qu’on lui change sa couche toutes les trois heures. (The baby needs his diaper changed every three hours.)

layer, coat (noun [f]: thickness) ●

• Appliquez une couche généreuse de vernis pour protéger le bois. (Apply a generous coat of varnish to protect the wood.)

stratum, layer (noun [f]: geological layer) ●

• Les géologues ont découvert des fossiles dans une couche de roche ancienne. (The geologists discovered fossils in an ancient rock stratum.)

childbirth (noun [f] pl: situation of a woman giving birth) ●

• Au XIXe siècle, beaucoup de femmes mouraient en couches. (In the 19th century, many women died in childbirth.)

bed (noun [f]: literary, bed) ●

• Le chevalier regagna sa couche après le long voyage. (The knight returned to his bed after the long journey.)

dater [date]

date (transitive verb: put the date on) ●

• N’oubliez pas de dater et signer le formulaire avant de le soumettre. (Don’t forget to date and sign the form before submitting it.)

date (transitive verb: assign a date to) ●

• Les experts ont réussi à dater ce manuscrit au XIIe siècle. (The experts managed to date this manuscript to the 12th century.)

date back to (intransitive verb: originate from a time) ●

• Cette tradition date du règne de Louis XIV. (This tradition dates back to the reign of Louis XIV.)

be a long time ago (intransitive verb: go back a long way) ●

• Notre dernière rencontre remonte à dix ans, ça date ! (Our last meeting was ten years ago—that’s a long time ago!)

be dated (intransitive verb: be old-fashioned) ●

• Cette coiffure date un peu, tu devrais essayer quelque chose de plus moderne. (That hairstyle is a bit dated; you should try something more modern.)

habituer [abitɥe]

get [sb/sth] used to [sth], accustom [sb/sth] to [sth] (transitive verb: familiarize) ●

• Les parents habituent leurs enfants à manger des légumes dès le plus jeune âge. (Parents get their children used to eating vegetables from an early age.)

get [sb/sth] used to doing [sth], accustom [sb/sth] to doing [sth], train [sb/sth] to do [sth] (verb phrase: familiarize with action) ●

• Elle habitue son chien à marcher sans laisse dans le parc. (She is training her dog to walk off-leash in the park.)

get used to [sth], get accustomed to [sth] (reflexive verb: develop familiarity) ●

• Il s’habitue lentement au climat froid de la Scandinavie. (He is slowly getting used to Scandinavia’s cold climate.)

get used to doing [sth], become accustomed to doing [sth] (reflexive verb: develop habit) ●

• Je m’habitue à me lever tôt pour faire du sport avant le travail. (I’m getting used to waking up early to exercise before work.)

settle into [sth], become familiar with [sth], get to know [sth] (reflexive verb: become comfortable, figurative) ●

• Les nouveaux employés mettent quelques semaines à s’habituer à la culture d’entreprise. (New employees take a few weeks to settle into the company culture.)

habituate [sb/sth] to [sth] (transitive verb: familiarize, formal) ●

• Le zoo habitue progressivement les animaux sauvages au contact humain. (The zoo gradually habituates wild animals to human contact.)

inévitable [inevitabl]

inevitable, unavoidable (adjective: bound to happen) ●

• Avec cette tempête, un retard de vol était inévitable. (With this storm, a flight delay was inevitable.)

unavoidable, inevitable, unmissable (adjective: impossible to avoid) ●

• Dans toute réunion de famille, il y a l’inévitable oncle qui raconte toujours les mêmes histoires. (At every family gathering, there’s the unavoidable uncle who always tells the same stories.)

recommencer [ʀəkɔmɑ̃se]

start [sth] again, begin [sth] again, restart (transitive verb: redo) ●

• L’étudiant a dû recommencer son essai après avoir perdu le fichier. (The student had to start his essay again after losing the file.)

start again, begin again, restart (intransitive verb: resume) ●

• Les travaux recommencent demain après la pause hivernale. (The work starts again tomorrow after the winter break.)

start to do [sth] again, start doing [sth] again, begin to do [sth] again (verb phrase: resume activity) ●

• Après des années d’arrêt, elle recommence à jouer du piano. (After years of not playing, she is starting to play the piano again.)

take [sth] up again, pick [sth] up again (transitive verb: resume activity) ●

• Il recommence ses études de médecine après une longue interruption. (He is picking up his medical studies again after a long break.)

race [ʀas]

breed (noun [f]: animal species) ●

• Cette race de chien est connue pour son intelligence et sa fidélité. (This breed of dog is known for its intelligence and loyalty.)

race (noun [f]: ethnic classification of people) ●

• La discrimination fondée sur la race est interdite par la loi. (Discrimination based on race is prohibited by law.)

vivement [vivmɑ̃]

quickly, swiftly (adverb: with speed) ●

• Elle s’est vivement retournée en entendant son nom. (She quickly turned around upon hearing her name.)

deeply, profoundly (adverb: with intensity) ●

• Son discours m’a vivement touché. (His speech touched me deeply.)

sharply, roundly (adverb: with harshness) ●

• Le ministre a été vivement critiqué pour sa décision. (The minister was sharply criticized for his decision.)

roll on [sth], bring on [sth], can’t wait for [sth] (adverb: expressing impatience, informal) ●

• Vivement l’été que je puisse partir à la plage ! (Roll on summer so I can go to the beach!)

I’ll be glad when [sth/sb] does [sth], I can’t wait until [sth/sb] does [sth] (expression: anticipation) ●

• Vivement que les enfants grandissent un peu ! (I can’t wait until the kids grow up a bit!)

beauté [bote]

beauty (noun [f]: aesthetic ideal) ●

• La beauté de cette cathédrale gothique attire des millions de visiteurs. (The beauty of this Gothic cathedral attracts millions of visitors.)

beauty (noun [f]: beautiful woman) ●

• Cette actrice était considérée comme une grande beauté dans les années cinquante. (This actress was considered a great beauty in the 1950s.)

nobility (noun [f]: moral grandeur) ●

• La beauté de son sacrifice a ému toute la communauté. (The nobility of his sacrifice moved the entire community.)

atmosphère [atmɔsfɛʀ]

atmosphere (noun [f]: gaseous layer around a planet) ●

• Mars possède une atmosphère beaucoup plus fine que celle de la Terre. (Mars has a much thinner atmosphere than Earth’s.)

atmosphere (noun [f]: lower layer of the sky) ●

• Le satellite a brûlé en rentrant dans l’atmosphère terrestre. (The satellite burned up upon re-entering the Earth’s atmosphere.)

air (noun [f]: breathable air) ●

• L’atmosphère de cette ville industrielle est souvent polluée. (The air in this industrial city is often polluted.)

atmosphere, ambiance, mood (noun [f]: general feeling) ●

• L’atmosphère de ce restaurant est très romantique avec ses bougies. (The atmosphere in this restaurant is very romantic with its candles.)

atmosphere (noun [f]: environment one lives in, figurative) ●

• L’atmosphère au bureau est devenue tendue depuis les licenciements. (The atmosphere at the office has become tense since the layoffs.)

épaule [epol]

shoulder (noun [f]: body part between neck and arm) ●

• Elle a posé sa tête sur l’épaule de son ami pendant le film. (She rested her head on her friend’s shoulder during the movie.)

shoulder (noun [f]: emotional support, figurative) ●

• Dans les moments difficiles, il a toujours offert une épaule à ses amis. (In difficult times, he always offered a shoulder to his friends.)

amoureux [amuʀø]

in love (with [sb]) (adjective: feeling love) ●

• Ils sont amoureux l’un de l’autre depuis le lycée. (They have been in love with each other since high school.)

romantic, amorous, loving (adjective: relating to love) ●

• Ils ont passé une soirée amoureuse au bord de la mer. (They spent a romantic evening by the sea.)

keen on [sth], enthusiastic about [sth], passionate about [sth] (adjective: passionate about something) ●

• Mon grand-père est amoureux de la littérature française du XIXe siècle. (My grandfather is passionate about 19th-century French literature.)

lover, fan, enthusiast (noun [m/f]: someone passionate about something) ●

• Ce guide est destiné aux amoureux de la nature. (This guide is intended for nature lovers.)

boyfriend, girlfriend (noun [m/f]: romantic partner, informal) ●

• Ma petite sœur ne veut pas nous présenter son amoureux. (My little sister doesn’t want to introduce us to her boyfriend.)

circonscription [siʀkɔ̃skʀipsjɔ̃]

district, constituency, ward, precinct (noun [f]: territorial subdivision) ●

• Le député représente les habitants de sa circonscription à l’Assemblée nationale. (The deputy represents the inhabitants of his constituency in the National Assembly.)

debout [dəbu]

standing, on your feet, standing up (adverb: on one’s feet) ●

• Les spectateurs étaient debout pour applaudir les artistes. (The spectators were standing to applaud the performers.)

up (adverb: out of bed) ●

• Je suis debout depuis cinq heures du matin. (I’ve been up since five in the morning.)

upright (adverb: vertical position) ●

• Rangez les bouteilles debout pour éviter les fuites. (Store the bottles upright to avoid leaks.)

standing (adverb: still intact) ●

• Malgré le séisme, la vieille église est toujours debout. (Despite the earthquake, the old church is still standing.)

influencer [ɛ̃flyɑ̃se]

influence, sway, have an influence on (transitive verb: modify someone’s opinion or behavior) ●

• Ses parents ont beaucoup influencé sa décision de devenir médecin. (His parents greatly influenced his decision to become a doctor.)

influence, affect, have an effect on, impact (transitive verb: modify something) ●

• Le climat influence directement la qualité des récoltes. (The climate directly influences the quality of the harvests.)

recul [ʁəkyl]

moving back (noun [m]: backward displacement) ●

• Le recul du camion a causé un petit accident sur le parking. (The moving back of the truck caused a small accident in the parking lot.)

recoil (noun [m]: backward movement) ●

• Son recul instinctif l’a protégé de la chute du vase. (His instinctive recoil protected him from the falling vase.)

space, distance (noun [m]: space behind) ●

• Il me faut plus de recul pour photographier tout le bâtiment. (I need more distance to photograph the entire building.)

drop, fall (noun [m]: decline) ●

• Le recul des ventes inquiète les actionnaires de l’entreprise. (The drop in sales is worrying the company’s shareholders.)

pushing back, postponement, deferment (noun [m]: delay to later) ●

• Le recul de la date limite a soulagé tous les étudiants. (The pushing back of the deadline relieved all the students.)

step back, distance, perspective, long-term data (noun [m]: figurative distance) ●

• Avec le recul, je comprends mieux les choix de mes parents. (With perspective, I understand my parents’ choices better.)

mortel [mɔʀtɛl]

mortal (adjective: not eternal) ●

• Même les plus grands héros restent mortels. (Even the greatest heroes remain mortal.)

fatal, lethal (adjective: causing death) ●

• L’accident a causé des blessures mortelles à deux passagers. (The accident caused fatal injuries to two passengers.)

mortal, living person (noun [m/f]: human being) ●

• Dans la mythologie, les mortels ne pouvaient pas accéder à l’Olympe. (In mythology, mortals could not access Olympus.)

mortal (adjective: wishing death upon) ●

• Les deux familles se vouent une haine mortelle depuis des générations. (The two families have harbored a mortal hatred for generations.)

deadly boring (adjective: extremely boring, informal) ●

• La conférence de trois heures était absolument mortelle. (The three-hour lecture was absolutely deadly boring.)

wicked, sick, brilliant, amazing (adjective: great, slang) ●

• T’as vu ce concert ? C’était mortel ! (Did you see that concert? It was wicked!)