When you think of speaking French, what comes to mind? If you’re picturing candlelit dinners, incredible art, and grand romance, you’re not alone. With that in mind, we’ve put together this list of 50 most beautiful words in French. Sprinkle a few of these French words for love into your vocabulary to impress your romantic interest!
French is known as the language of love, and just about any common French word sounds beautiful. Countless writers and poets have used the language to explore themes such as love, beauty, and nature throughout the ages.
These vocabulary words were selected for their pleasant sound and their potent meanings. Before checking out the list, listen to these words for yourself!
What Are the 50 Most Beautiful French Words?
The 50 most beautiful words in French include “bisou” which means “kiss” and “chatoyer” which means “shimmer”. But it’s not only romantic and pretty words that sound great in the French language. French has the ability to make even commonplace objects sound breathtaking. For example, in French, “socks” is transformed into the beautiful, “chaussettes” and “grapefruit” becomes the compelling, “pamplemousse”.
- ange – angel (masc.)
- baleine – whale (fem.)
- bisou – kiss (masc.)
- brindille – twig (fem.)
- brûler – to burn
- brume – mist (fem.)
- câlin – hug (masc.)
- chaleur – heat (fem.)
- chatoyer – to shimmer
- chaussettes – socks (fem.)
- mon chouchou – my little cabbage, said as a term of endearment (masc.)
- citronnade – lemonade (fem.)
- citrouille – pumpkin (fem.)
- coquillage – seashell (masc.)
- croquis – sketch (masc.)
- dépaysement – the feeling of being in another country (masc.)
- doux – soft
- écarlate – scarlet
- éclatant – brilliant, dazzling, gleaming
- empêchement – a last minute difficulty (masc.)
- épanoui – blooming, joyful, radiant
- éphémère – ephemeral
- étoile – star (masc.)
- feuilles – leaves (fem.)
- flâner – to stroll aimlessly
- floraison – bloom (fem.)
- grelotter – to shiver
- hirondelle – swallow (bird) (fem.)
When you start learning these French words, remember that one of the easiest memorization tips is to find cognates. Cognates are French words that share a root with English words, and look and sound similar in both languages. Some examples from the list above include éphémère – ephemeral, and écarlate – scarlet. Can you spot some other cognates in the list above? Drop your answers in the comments section!
How Do You Pronounce These Popular French Words?
In this video, a French teacher will walk you through the pronunciation for the 50 popular French words found below. Practice pronouncing each French word along with the video, then go back and repeat. French is commonly believed to be one of the most challenging languages for English speakers to pronounce, but saying French words and phrases out loud is a proven way to not only hone in on correct pronunciation, but also to memorize what you’re learning.
These Beautiful French Words Will Improve Your Whole Vocabulary
Now that you’ve found plenty of beautiful French words to learn, you’ll want to integrate them into your vocabulary as much as possible. Increasing your vocabulary by using these memorable words is one of the most important ways to learn a new language. You’ll find that knowing these words will not only help you sound amazing when speaking this Romance language, but they’ll also prove useful in day-to-day conversations.
Remember that it’s important to hear, speak, write, and read in your target language in order to gain fluency. Use the list of French vocabulary words above to make yourself flash cards, listen to French radio stations to start recognizing useful phrases, and watch French video tutorials to practice important language rules and gain vocabulary.
And of course, working with a French teacher or taking conversational French classes is the next step in improving your language skills.
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Jessica Dais