False friends: French–English
48 words that look like English and mean something else. This list is built the other way round from the usual ones: on the left is what you want to say, next to it the French word for it — and only then the trap. If all you know is what a word does not mean, you are still stuck in the conversation.
Everyday
The pairs that turn up in your first conversations.
| You mean | That is | Not this one | Because that means |
|---|---|---|---|
| pain | la douleur | le pain | bread |
| Tu peux acheter du pain en rentrant ?Could you pick up some bread on your way home?«I’m in pain» is j’ai mal; «it hurts here» is j’ai mal ici. La douleur is the noun you would use at the doctor’s. | |||
| to rest | se reposer | rester | to stay, to remain |
| Je reste à la maison ce soir.I’m staying in tonight.«Have a rest» is repose-toi. Le reste, on the other hand, really is the rest: what is left over. | |||
| journey | le voyage, le trajet | la journée | day (all day long) |
| J’ai passé une excellente journée.I’ve had a lovely day.A long journey is un voyage; the daily journey to work is le trajet. Bonne journée ! is what people say as you leave a shop in the daytime. | |||
| magazine | le magazine | le magasin | shop |
| Le magasin ferme à dix-neuf heures.The shop shuts at seven.The two words sit a single letter apart. A department store is un grand magasin. | |||
| to attend | assister à | attendre | to wait (for) |
| Nous attendons le bus depuis vingt minutes.We’ve been waiting for the bus for twenty minutes.No preposition after attendre: j’attends Marie is «I’m waiting for Marie». | |||
| library | la bibliothèque | la librairie | bookshop |
| J’ai trouvé ce roman dans une petite librairie du quartier.I found this novel in a little bookshop round the corner.In a library you borrow; in a librairie you pay. Une bibliothèque is also a bookcase at home. | |||
| coin | la pièce (de monnaie) | le coin | corner |
| La boulangerie est au coin de la rue.The bakery is on the corner.Du coin means «local»: les gens du coin are the people who live round here. | |||
| raisin | le raisin sec | le raisin | grapes |
| Elle a acheté une grappe de raisin au marché.She bought a bunch of grapes at the market.French uses the singular for grapes as a food: du raisin. A single grape is un grain de raisin. | |||
| car | la voiture | le car | coach |
| Nous sommes partis en car pour l’Espagne.We went to Spain by coach. | |||
| surname | le nom de famille | le surnom | nickname |
| Au lycée, son surnom était « le Prof ».At school his nickname was ‘the Prof’.On a form, nom is your surname and prénom your first name. | |||
| medicine (a drug) | le médicament | le médecin | doctor |
| Il faut appeler le médecin.We need to call the doctor.Medicine as a subject you study is la médecine — which makes three words that differ by a few letters. | |||
| sale (in the shops) | les soldes | sale | dirty |
| Ta chemise est sale, mets-en une autre.Your shirt’s dirty, put another one on.The January and summer sales are les soldes; a sale in the sense of selling something is une vente. | |||
| chair | la chaise | la chair | flesh |
| La chair de ce poisson est très fine.This fish has very delicate flesh.An armchair is un fauteuil. La chair de poule is goose pimples. | |||
| large | grand | large | wide, broad |
| La rivière est très large à cet endroit.The river is very wide at this point.Clothes are where it bites first: a large jumper is un grand pull, or one in taille L, while un pull large is a loose, baggy one. | |||
| petrol | l’essence | le pétrole | crude oil |
| Ce pays vit surtout de son pétrole.The country lives mainly on its oil.At the pump you ask for le plein d’essence; diesel is le gazole. | |||
At work and at college
What goes wrong in a meeting, an e-mail or a lecture hall.
| You mean | That is | Not this one | Because that means |
|---|---|---|---|
| reunion | les retrouvailles | la réunion | meeting |
| La réunion commence à neuf heures.The meeting starts at nine.Je suis en réunion is what a colleague says when they cannot pick up the phone. | |||
| to pass (an exam) | réussir (un examen) | passer (un examen) | to sit, to take (an exam) |
| Elle passe son examen de français jeudi.She’s sitting her French exam on Thursday.J’ai passé l’examen says only that you turned up. If it went well, say j’ai réussi l’examen or j’ai été reçu. | |||
| college (university) | l’université, la fac | le collège | secondary school (ages 11 to 15) |
| Mon fils entre au collège en septembre.My son starts secondary school in September.After le collège comes le lycée, and after that la fac, the everyday word for university. | |||
| to demand | exiger | demander | to ask (for) |
| Il m’a demandé l’heure.He asked me the time.Demander is as polite as asking. A customer who wants their money back exige un remboursement. | |||
| lecture | le cours magistral, la conférence | la lecture | reading |
| La lecture du soir l’aide à s’endormir.Reading in the evening helps her get to sleep.At university a lecture is un cours or un cours magistral; a talk given to the public is une conférence. | |||
| agenda (of a meeting) | l’ordre du jour | l’agenda | diary, planner |
| Je note le rendez-vous dans mon agenda.I’ll put the appointment in my diary. | |||
| to resume | reprendre | résumer | to sum up, to summarise |
| Pouvez-vous résumer l’article en trois phrases ?Can you sum up the article in three sentences?In French un résumé is only ever a summary; a CV is un CV. | |||
| stage (in a theatre) | la scène | le stage | work placement, training course |
| Elle fait un stage de six mois dans une banque.She’s doing a six-month placement at a bank.Un stagiaire is an intern or a trainee. | |||
| location | l’emplacement, le lieu | la location | renting, hire |
| La location d’une voiture coûte cher en été.Hiring a car is expensive in summer.A flat to rent is advertised as en location. A film shot on location is tourné en extérieur. | |||
| to retire | prendre sa retraite | retirer | to take out, to withdraw |
| J’ai retiré deux cents euros au distributeur.I took two hundred euros out at the cashpoint.A retired person is un retraité, une retraitée. | |||
| to introduce (someone) | présenter | introduire | to insert, to bring in |
| Introduisez votre carte dans le lecteur.Insert your card into the reader.«May I introduce my colleague?» is je vous présente ma collègue. | |||
| rent | le loyer | la rente | private income, annuity |
| Il vit de ses rentes depuis vingt ans.He has lived off his private income for twenty years.The rent you pay each month is le loyer; une rente is money that comes in without work. | |||
| patron (of the arts) | le mécène | le patron | boss |
| Le patron a réuni toute l’équipe.The boss called the whole team together.A regular customer of a shop or café is un habitué; the owner behind the counter is le patron. | |||
| to achieve | réussir, atteindre | achever | to finish, to complete |
| Il a achevé son roman en deux ans.He finished his novel in two years.To achieve a goal is atteindre un objectif. Achever also means to finish off — a wounded animal, for instance. | |||
| issue (a problem) | la question, le problème | l’issue | outcome; way out |
| L’issue des négociations reste incertaine.The outcome of the talks is still uncertain.The emergency exit is l’issue de secours, and a dead end une voie sans issue. | |||
| prejudice | le préjugé | le préjudice | harm, loss (in law) |
| Il a subi un préjudice important.He suffered considerable harm.Le préjudice belongs to legal language: it is the damage a court may compensate. | |||
Nearly right
Words that exist — just not for what you mean.
| You mean | That is | Not this one | Because that means |
|---|---|---|---|
| gentle | doux | gentil | kind, nice |
| Merci, c’est très gentil de ta part.Thanks, that’s really kind of you.A gentle voice is une voix douce; a gentle slope une pente douce. | |||
| sympathetic | compatissant, compréhensif | sympathique | nice, likeable |
| Ton frère est très sympathique.Your brother’s really nice.In speech it is nearly always sympa. Sympathy for someone’s loss is la compassion. | |||
| phrase | l’expression | la phrase | sentence |
| Écris une phrase avec ce mot.Write a sentence with this word. | |||
| sensible | raisonnable, sensé | sensible | sensitive |
| Elle a la peau très sensible au soleil.Her skin is very sensitive to the sun.The spelling is identical, which is what makes it dangerous: a sensible decision is une décision raisonnable. | |||
| actually | en fait | actuellement | at the moment, currently |
| Actuellement, il vit à Lyon.He’s living in Lyon at the moment.The adjective does the same: actuel means «current», never «real». The real reason is la vraie raison. | |||
| deception | la tromperie | la déception | disappointment |
| Quelle déception, le concert a été annulé !What a let-down — the concert’s been cancelled.The verb follows: je suis déçu is «I’m disappointed», not «I’ve been deceived». | |||
| to pretend | faire semblant | prétendre | to claim |
| Il prétend qu’il n’était pas là ce soir-là.He claims he wasn’t there that evening.«He’s pretending to be asleep» is il fait semblant de dormir. | |||
| blessed | béni | blessé | injured, wounded |
| Deux personnes ont été blessées dans l’accident.Two people were injured in the accident.The feelings can be hurt too: il était blessé par sa remarque. | |||
| formidable (daunting) | redoutable | formidable | terrific, great |
| On a passé un week-end formidable.We had a fantastic weekend.In French the word has lost its fear altogether. A formidable opponent is un adversaire redoutable. | |||
| hazard | le danger, le risque | le hasard | chance |
| Je l’ai rencontrée par hasard dans le métro.I ran into her by chance on the Underground.Au hasard means «at random». | |||
| figure (body shape) | la silhouette, la ligne | la figure | face |
| Il avait la figure toute rouge.His face was bright red.Watching your figure is faire attention à sa ligne. | |||
| eventually | finalement, à la fin | éventuellement | possibly, if need be |
| Nous pourrions éventuellement reporter la réunion.We could possibly put the meeting back.It is a matter of maybe, not of later. «Eventually he agreed» is il a fini par accepter. | |||
| to realise | se rendre compte | réaliser | to carry out, to make (a film) |
| Il a enfin réalisé son rêve.He has finally made his dream come true.In everyday speech many French speakers now use réaliser for «realise» as well, but in careful writing je me suis rendu compte is the safe choice. | |||
| engaged (to be married) | fiancé | engagé | committed (to a cause) |
| C’est un chanteur très engagé.He’s a singer with strong political convictions.Engager also means to take someone on: elle a été engagée is «she got the job». | |||
| inhabited | habité | inhabité | uninhabited |
| Cette île est inhabitée depuis un siècle.Nobody has lived on this island for a century.The in- here is the negative prefix, so the French word means the exact opposite. | |||
| to ignore | ne pas tenir compte de | ignorer | not to know, to be unaware of |
| J’ignore où il habite maintenant.I don’t know where he lives now.With a person it can mean what you expect: elle m’ignore is «she ignores me». With a fact it means not knowing it. | |||
| luxurious | luxueux | luxurieux | lustful |
| Le roman met en scène un prince luxurieux et cruel.The novel features a cruel, lecherous prince.A luxury hotel is un hôtel de luxe; la luxure is one of the seven deadly sins. | |||