French Vocabulary: 5 False Cognates to Watch Out For

Cognates are words that sound similar and can mean the same thing across different languages. However, in French, there are some tricky cognates that don’t mean what you might think they mean. French tutor Carol Beth L. shares five common French false cognates…

In French, there are a number of words that look like English words but have completely different meanings. These are called “false cognates” and can be confusing for students of the language. 

Here are five of the most common French false cognates to watch out for.

What is an Example of a False Cognate French? 

There are many words in French that look similar to words in English, but have different meanings. These words are known as false cognates, and can often lead to confusion for French learners, with some common examples of false cognates including:

• actualité (news/current affairs) vs. actuel (current)
• visage (face) vs. viser (to aim)
• librairie (bookshop) vs. libérer (to release)
• secret (secret) vs. secrètement (secretly)

As you can see, these words can often be confusing for English speakers learning French. It’s important to be aware of these false cognates in order to avoid making mistakes in communication.

The best way to learn these false cognates French learners should know – as well as other tips for speaking and reading French – is to hire a French tutor. You’ll learn all you need to know about English French false cognates, plus more helpful tips as detailed in the video below:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HbfeKFEMeQU 

What is a False Friend French?

A False Friend is a word in another language that looks similar to a word in your language, but has a different meaning. It’s the same thing as a false cognate – the two terms are often used interchangeably.

For example, the English word “embarrassed” is similar to the French word “embarrassé”, but in French it means “to block”. This can be confusing for English speakers learning French, because they might think the word means the same thing. False Friends can also be phrases, not just individual words. 

For example, the English phrase “I’m going to put on a brave face” is similar to the French phrase “je vais faire bonne figure”, but in French it means “I’m going to pretend to be brave”. So if you’re an English speaker learning French, be careful of these false French cognates!

What is a False Cognate Examples? Here Are Some French False Cognates to Be Aware Of

Due to their similar roots, French and English share some vocabulary and grammar. La table is table, la geographie is geography, and un film is a film – otherwise known as a movie. Similar word pairs between two languages are known as cognates.

Not all such similar words mean the same thing, however, so watch out, or some pairs may trick you! These false cognates – also known as “false friends” – sound alike but don’t actually mean the same thing. Here are a few notable examples.

1) Une librarie

Would you normally expect to pay to use the books in une librarie? In France, yes. Une librarie is a bookstore, while a library is une bibliothèque.

2) Football

Football sounds a lot like the American sport “football.” Like football, football is also in fact quite popular in France. But when the French play football, there are no yardage lines on the field, and the field goals have nets and no poles – because in fact the French word football actually refers to “soccer.” Our version of football is called le football américain, or American football.

3) Attendre

Attendre sounds like the English verb “to attend.” Logically, “j’attends le concert” would mean “I’m attending the concert,” right? Well, not quite. Attendre actually means to wait, so, “j’attends le concert” actually means “I’m waiting for the concert.”