French

1 of 3

adjective

1
: of, relating to, or characteristic of France, its people, or their language
2
: of or relating to the overseas descendants of the French people
Frenchness noun

French

2 of 3

noun

1
plural in construction : the French people
2
: a Romance language that developed out of the Vulgar Latin spoken in northern and central Transalpine Gaul and that became the literary and official language of France
3
: strong language
pardon my French

french

3 of 3

verb

frenched; frenching; frenches
often capitalized

transitive verb

1
: to trim the meat from the end of the bone of (something, such as a chop)
2
: to cut (green beans) in thin lengthwise strips before cooking

Examples of French in a Sentence

Noun the customs of the French
Recent Examples on the Web
Adjective
The Iranian French actress Zar Amir Ebrahimi has the eyes of a silent film heroine and the face of a Modigliani. Ty Burr, Washington Post, 6 Mar. 2024 Johanna De Jesus Dos Santos, French gymnast who was the 2021 European balance beam champion, 2019 European all-around champion, and the 2017 and 2018 French national champion. Christopher Kuhagen, Journal Sentinel, 6 Mar. 2024 Starting with a French restaurant honors the city the buildings have called home for more than a century by celebrating its foundation as a French territory. Detroit Free Press, 6 Mar. 2024 In a video posted by French magazine Gala, the former couple greeted each other with a hug and there appeared to be no bad blood between them. Julia Moore, Peoplemag, 6 Mar. 2024 The French government even gave Boutonnat a second, three-year term as CNC boss in July 2022, sparking outrage in some quarters, with many in the French media pointing to Boutonnat’s close ties with French President Emmanuel Macron and the former culture minister Rima Abdul-Malak. Scott Roxborough, The Hollywood Reporter, 6 Mar. 2024 While once-robust labor unions have seen their numbers decline more drastically in France than in other European countries — around 8 percent of French workers belong to labor unions, compared with 35 percent in Italy or 18 percent in Germany — French unions remain strong. Elisabeth Zerofsky, New York Times, 6 Mar. 2024 The National Film Board plays a crucial role in allocating subsidies to French TV and film producers, establishing selection committees and boards, as well as setting guidelines for the whole industry. Elsa Keslassy, Variety, 6 Mar. 2024 Each year the house will release a new luxury Cognac in partnership with a prestigious French château. Katie Kelly Bell, Forbes, 23 Feb. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'French.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Adjective

Middle English, from Old English frencisc, from Franca Frank

First Known Use

Adjective

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Noun

12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Verb

circa 1895, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of French was before the 12th century

Dictionary Entries Near French

Cite this Entry

“French.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/French. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

French

1 of 2 adjective
: of or relating to France, its people, or their language

French

2 of 2 noun
1
: the Romance language of the French
2
French plural : the people of France

Medical Definition

French

noun
plural French
: a unit of measure equal to one-third millimeter used in measuring the outside diameter of a tubular instrument (as a catheter or sound) inserted into a bodily cavity
the catheter shaft size is three FrenchMedical Industry Today
abbreviation F

Biographical Definition

French

biographical name

Daniel Chester 1850–1931 American sculptor
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