French Word of the Day

a pig

Les cochons disent «groin groin».
Pigs say “oink oink.”

TODAY
We’re learning the vocabulary of the farm, or la ferme. For more words about the farm, animals and pets,  click here s’il vous plaît.

READY TO GET DOWN ON THE FRENCH FARM?
Take our Farm Animals Quiz to find out if you can say pig in French and more.

the predicted path

La trajectoire prévue de la tempête était le long de la côte est.
The projected path of the storm was along the east coast.

TODAY
Our word is inspired by the vocabulary of weather and storms. For more French weather words, click here.

QUIZ YOURSELF!
Take our Stormy Weather Quiz to find out if you can say predicted path in French.

winemaker

Le travail est dur. Mais pour le vigneron, ça vaut la peine.
The work is hard. But for the winemaker, it’s worth it.

the volcano

Le volcan Eyjafjöll s’est réveillé en 2010 en Islande.
The Eyjafjallajokull Volcano awoke in 2010 in Iceland.

TODAY
Our vocabulary word is inspired by weather and geological events. For more words about climate, click here.

ON THE ROAD TO NOWHERE?
Volcanoes are just one of many phenomena that can cause travel disruptions. Find out if you’re ready to talk about the events that are keeping the brakes on your travel plans — including saying volcano in French — with our Travel Disruption Quiz.

well-behaved or wise

Les enfants sont sages.
The children are well-behaved.

AVOID THE TEMPTING MISTAKE!
In this case, sage means well-behaved. But if we said our grandparents were sages, we would probably mean they were wise. Of course, well-behaved grandparents are welcome, too!

TODAY
Our topic is especially useful. While French and English have many cognates — words that are derived from the same root word and consequently look and sound a lot alike — these words sometimes have similar meanings but other times do not. When they don’t, they are called false cognates and can provide plenty of pitfalls for language learners. Today’s word can be one such example. Click here to discover more false cognates on our Web site.

WILL YOU BE FOOLED?
Take our False Cognates Quiz to see if you can navigate troublesome false cognates in French.

to plug in/to unplug

Branchez l’appareil avant de l’utiliser. Débranchez-le après avoir fini.
Plug in the device before using it. Unplug it when finished.

FUN FACT:
Branché, which literally means to be plugged in, is also widely used to mean someone who is hip — plugged in, if you will — to current trends, fashion and other popular culture.

You might hear a conversation like this:
— Natalie est assez branchée, non?Natalie’s rather hip, no?
— Oui, bien sûr, elle est très chic. Yes, of course, she’s very stylish.

a backhand

Elle a remporté le tournoi avec un revers à deux mains.
She won the tournament with a two-handed backhand.

TODAY
We’re brushing up on our French tennis vocabulary. Click here to discover more French sports words.

READY TO PLAY TENNIS IN FRENCH?
Find out if you remember how to say backhand in French and more with our Tennis Vocabulary Quiz.

n.m., high-speed Internet

L’Internet haute vitesse est très utile pour regarder des vidéos.
High-speed Internet is very useful for watching videos.

MORE FRENCH TECH WORDS
Discover more French words about computers and technology here.

ARE YOU PLUGGED-IN IN FRENCH?
Find out with our Computers and Technology Quiz.

a thriller

Quelle est la différence entre un film à suspense et un film d’épouvante?
What is the difference between a thriller and a horror movie?

MORE TYPES OF FILMS IN FRENCH
une comédie = a comedy
un drame = a drama
un film d’action = an action film

TODAY
We’re looking at French vocabulary words about movies and filmmaking. Click here to discover more French words about movies and film.

KNOW YOUR FRENCH MOVIE VOCABULARY?
Take our Movies and Film Quiz to find out if you can say suspense thriller in French and more.