Les faux amis or “false friends” are words that look similar in both French and English, but they have different meanings. In general, there are two common types of faux amis:
Actuellement means “currently” or “at the moment”. The French word for “actually” is en fait. Guilaine, our content contributor and a certified French teacher, explains the difference between these two words here.
Un bras means “an arm” and the French word for “a bra” is un soutien-gorge.
While having the same spelling, the French coin means “corner”.
Éventuellement does not mean “eventually” and its closet English translation is “possibly”. On the other hand, the French word for “eventually” is finalement.
This is one of the most confused false friends. Une librairie is “a bookstore”, and the French word for “a library” is une bibliothèque.
Another classic false friend. In French, location means “rental” and here are some examples.
At first glace, la location d’appartement sounds a lot like “the location of apartment”. However, it is not the case at all. The French words for the English “location” include emplacement, endroit, and lieu.
Un magasin is “a store” and, while it looks similar to “magazine”, it means something else entirely.
On the other hand, un magazine is considered as un vrai ami or “a true friend” to a magazine. They are spelled the same and have the same meaning in both languages.
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Passer un examen does not mean “to pass an exam”. It means “to take an exam” and, usually, the exam result is not known yet. In French, the verb for “to pass the exam” is réussir.
Rester means “to stay”. It has nothing to do with relaxing or taking a rest. For example, rester chez moi means “to stay at (my) home”, not “to take a rest at home”.
If we want to say “to take a rest”. we use the French reflexive verb se reposer.
In French, sensible means “sensitive”, both emotionally and physically.
The French word equivalent to the English “sensible” is raisonnable.
The more you expose to the French language, the less confusing it becomes. As you continue to study, you will become more familiar with several frequent French expressions that are actually translations of other words— and vice versa.
Guilaine is the founder of The French Learning Kit Podcast. A certified French teacher from Grenoble, since 2010 she has taught thousands of students in Europe, Asia, and Australia. Listen to her podcast for free, or if you look for a professional native French teacher, book an online class with her via the icons below.
Guilaine is the founder of The French Learning Kit Podcast. A certified French teacher from Grenoble, since 2010 she has taught thousands of students in Europe, Asia, and Australia. Listen to her podcast for free, or if you look for a professional native French teacher, book an online class with her via the icons below.
Email for free information.
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