French–English dictionary

lusitanien

Of or pertaining to ancient Roman province of Lusitania, its people or culture.

lusitanienne

Of or pertaining to ancient Roman province of Lusitania, its people or culture.

lustre

A branched, often ornate, light fixture suspended from a ceiling.

Lutèce

An ancient Roman city and island in modern France; modern Paris.

lutécium

A chemical element (symbol Lu) with an atomic number of 71, a silvery-white metal which resists corrosion in dry air.

luth

A fretted stringed instrument, similar to the guitar, having a bowl-shaped body or soundbox; any of a wide variety of chordophones with a pear-shaped body and a neck whose upper surface is in the same plane as the soundboard, with strings along the neck and parallel to the soundboard.

luthérien

(Christianity) Of or pertaining to the theology of Martin Luther (1483–1546) or his followers, or the Lutheran church.

luthérienne

(Christianity) A member of any of the Christian churches which identify with the theology of Martin Luther.

luthier

Maker of musical instruments.

luthière

A person who, or a business which, makes or repairs stringed wooden musical instruments, such as lutes, violins, and guitars.

lutin

(Germanic mythology) A supernatural being or spirit associated with illness, mischief, and harmful or dangerous magical influence; in later Norse sources, sometimes divided into benevolent light elves (inhabiting Álfheimr) and malevolent dark elves.

lutin irlandais

(Irish folklore) One of a race of elves that can reveal hidden treasure to those who catch them.

lutrin

A stand, made for holding books open.

lutte

(military) A general action, fight, or encounter, in which all the divisions of an army are or may be engaged; a combat, an engagement.

lutte anti-aérienne

Ground-based anti-aircraft guns firing explosive shells. [from 1938]

lutter

(intransitive) To join in battle; to contend in fight

lutteur

A person who fights; a combatant.

lutz

(figure skating) A jump in which the skater takes off from the back outside edge of one skate, rotates counterclockwise and lands on the back outside edge of the other skate.

lux

In the International System of Units, the derived unit of illuminance or illumination; one lumen per square metre. Symbol: lx

luxation

The act of dislocating, or putting out of joint; also, the condition of being thus displaced.

luxueusement

In a manner that involves luxury; in an expensive or indulgent manner.

luxueux

Very fine in quality and comfortable.

luxure

Inordinate indulgence in sexual activity.

luxuriant

Abundant in growth or detail.

luzerne

(uncountable) A plant, principally of Medicago sativa, grown as a pasture crop.

lycanthrope

(mythology) A person who is transformed or can transform into a wolf or a wolflike human, often said to do so during a full moon.

lycée

A type of secondary school in some European countries which typically prepares students for university.

Lydia

A en given name.

Lydie

A en given name.

Lyman

A city, the administrative centre of Lyman urban hromada, Kramatorsk Raion, Donetsk Oblast, Ukraine, founded in 1667 or 1678.

lymphatique

(anatomy) Pertaining to lymph or the lymphatic system.

lymphe

(physiology) A colourless, watery, coagulable bodily fluid which bathes the tissues and is carried by the lymphatic system into the bloodstream; it resembles blood plasma in containing white blood cells and especially lymphocytes but normally few red blood cells and no platelets.

lymphome

(oncology, pathology) A malignant tumor that arises in the lymph nodes or in other lymphoid tissue.

lynchage

Execution of a person by mob action without due process of law, especially by hanging.

lyncher

(transitive) To execute (somebody) without a proper legal trial or procedure, especially by hanging and backed by a mob.

Lynx

(constellation) A faint spring constellation of the northern sky. It lies north of the constellation Cancer.

lynx bai

A North American wildcat, Lynx rufus, having tufted ears and a short tail.

lynx roux

A North American wildcat, Lynx rufus, having tufted ears and a short tail.

Lyre

(constellation) A summer constellation of the northern sky, said to resemble a lyre. It includes the bright star Vega and the Ring Nebula.

lys

Any of several flowers in the genus Lilium of the family Liliaceae, which includes a great many ornamental species.

Łódź

The capital city of Lodz Voivodeship, Poland, also spelled Łódź.

m'

(proscribed) Me, as the object of a verb or preposition without a reflexive trigger. Sometimes used for intensifying the pronoun of oneself. [from 10th c.]

m'as-tu-vu

(of people or behaviour) Overly bold or self-assertive to the point of being insensitive, tactless or impudent; shameless.

ma

Belonging to me.

ma chérie

(countable) A term of endearment.

mac

A pimp.

macabre

Representing or personifying death.

macadamia

An evergreen tree, of the genus Macadamia, native to Australia and cultivated in Hawaii.

Macao

A city, special administrative region, and peninsula in China, west of Hong Kong.

macaquerie

Activity that is mischievous, stupid, or time-wasting. [from mid 19th c.]

macareux

The Atlantic puffin (Fratercula arctica) or (by extension) any of the other various small seabirds of the genera Fratercula and Lunda that are black and white with a brightly-coloured beak. [from 17th c.]

macaron

(US) A badge worn on clothes, fixed with a pin through the fabric.

macaronique

(literature) Written in a hodgepodge mixture of two or more languages.

macaronis

(uncountable) A type of pasta in the form of short tubes, typically boiled and served in soup, with a sauce, or in melted cheese; a dish of this. [from 18th c.]

macchabée

(slang) A cadaver; a dead person.

Macédoine

(historical) An ancient Greek kingdom in Southeast Europe in the Balkans, located to the north of Thessaly, comprising the Greek city of Thessaloniki and its surroundings.

macédonien

Of or pertaining to Macedonia or its people or language.

macédonienne

(countable) A person from Macedonia (in any sense).

macérer

To soften (something) or separate it into pieces by soaking it in a heated or unheated liquid.

machairodontiné

(archaic, countable) The pointed piece of wood that is struck in the game of tipcat.

machairodontinés

(archaic, countable) The pointed piece of wood that is struck in the game of tipcat.

mâcher

To crush with the teeth by repeated closing and opening of the jaws; done to food to soften it and break it down by the action of saliva before it is swallowed.

machette

A sword-like tool used for cutting large plants with a chopping motion, or used as a weapon.

Machiavel

Niccolò Machiavelli (1469-1527), Italian statesman and writer, whose work The Prince (1532) advises that acquiring and exercising power may require unethical methods.

machiavélien

Related to the philosophical system of Niccolò Machiavelli.

machiavélique

Attempting to achieve goals by cunning, scheming, and unscrupulous methods, especially in politics.

machin

A machine that is complicated and precarious.

machin-chose

(slang) A metasyntactic term used for any object whose actual name the speaker does not know or cannot remember; a doodad, gizmo, thingamajig, thingy.

machinal

(figurative) As if performed by a machine: lifeless, mindless, thoughtless, automatic.

machinalement

In a mechanical manner, mindlessly, thoughtlessly, automatically, without thinking.

machinateur

One who plots or schemes, who formulates devious plans.

machination

(chiefly, in the plural) A clever scheme or artful plot, usually crafted for evil purposes. [from circa 1473]

machine

(informal) Someone with exceptional skills in a certain field.

machine à café

Any of several different types of kitchen apparatus used to brew and filter coffee.

machine à écrire

A device, at least partially mechanical, used to print text by pressing keys that cause type to be impressed through an inked ribbon onto paper.

machinerie

The working parts of a machine as a group.

machines

The machines constituting a production apparatus, in a plant etc., collectively.

machiniste

(film or television production) A person responsible for handling equipment on the set.

machisme

exaggerated masculinity

macho

(informal) Masculine in an overly assertive or aggressive way.

mâchoire

One of the bones, usually bearing teeth, which form the framework of the mouth.

mâchoire inférieure

One of the bones, usually bearing teeth, which form the framework of the mouth.

mâchoire supérieure

One of the bones, usually bearing teeth, which form the framework of the mouth.

Macintosh

(computing) A brand of personal computer manufactured by Apple Inc.

macis

A spice obtained from the outer layer of the kernel of the fruit of the nutmeg.

maçon

A craftsman who builds walls and suchlike out of bricks.

maçonne

A bricklayer, one whose occupation is to build with stone or brick

macquer

(transitive) To bruise and crush; to knead.

macro

(programming) A comparatively human-friendly abbreviation of complex input to a computer program.

macro-

Very large in scope or scale.

macro-commande

(programming) A comparatively human-friendly abbreviation of complex input to a computer program.

macrocosme

(philosophy) A complex structure, such as a society, considered as a single entity that contains numerous similar, smaller-scale structures.

macroéconomie

The study of the entire economy in terms of the total amount of goods and services produced, total income earned, the level of employment of productive resources, and the general behavior of prices.

macroscopique

Visible to the unassisted eye.

macula

(anatomy) An oval yellow spot near the center of the retina of the human eye, histologically defined as having two or more layers of ganglion cells, responsible for detailed central vision.

macula lutea

(anatomy) An oval yellow spot near the center of the retina of the human eye, histologically defined as having two or more layers of ganglion cells, responsible for detailed central vision.

maculer

To obscure by blurring; to smear.

Madagascar

An island and country off the east coast of Africa. Official name: Republic of Madagascar. Capital: Antananarivo.

Madame

An aristocratic title for a woman; the wife of a lord and/or a woman who holds the position in her own right; a title for a peeress, the wife of a peer or knight, and the daughters and daughters-in-law of certain peers.

Madame Loyal

The person who manages the performers in a circus ring.

Madeleine

A en given name.

mademoiselle

(often disparaging or sarcastic) Used in a mock title to point out some quality, or alleged quality, of a girl or woman.

madère

A type of fortified wine produced on that island.

Madone

(Christianity, sometimes with definite article) Synonym of Mary, mother of Jesus, especially in Catholic contexts.

madras

A brightly colored cotton fabric with a checked or striped pattern.

madré

Skillful at deceiving others.

Madrid

A province of the Community of Madrid, Spain. Capital: Madrid.

madrier

(structural) Any large piece of timber or iron long in proportion to its thickness, and prepared for use.

maëlstrom

A large and violent whirlpool.

mafia

A crime syndicate.

Magali

A en given name.

magasin

A chamber in or attachable to a firearm enabling multiple rounds of ammunition to be fed into the firearm.

magasin d'alimentation

A shop or store that sells groceries; a grocery store.

magasin d’usine

A shop that sells the products of a particular manufacturer or supplier.

magasinage

The process of buying goods or services, or searching for those suitable to buy.

magasiner

(intransitive) To visit stores or shops to browse or explore merchandise, especially with the intention of buying such merchandise.

magazine

A nonacademic, periodical publication which consists of articles by multiple writers on some broad topic or theme.

mage

(chiefly, fantasy) A magician, wizard, sorcerer, witch, warlock or mystic.

Magellan

A surname.

magenta

A color which is close to an equal mixture of red and blue which is an additive secondary color but a subtractive primary color evoked by the combination of red and blue light.

magicien

A male magic-user; a male witch; a wizard.

magie

The application of rituals or actions, especially those based on occult knowledge, to subdue or manipulate natural or supernatural beings and forces in order to have some benefit from them. [from 14th c.]

magique

Magical or fairylike.

magiquement

In a magical manner; by magic, or as if by magic.

magistériel

Having a commanding style.

magistral

Of major significance or importance.

magistralement

To a significant degree.

magmatique

(geology) Resulting from, or produced by, great heat. With rocks, it could also mean formed from lava or magma.

magnanime

Noble and generous in spirit.

magnanimité

The quality of being magnanimous; kindness of nature; generosity.

magnat

Powerful industrialist; captain of industry.

magnésie

(uncountable, climbing, gymnastics) A white powdery substance used to prevent hands slipping from holds when climbing, or losing grip in weight-lifting or gymnastics, sometimes but not always limestone-chalk, often magnesium carbonate (MgCO3).

magnésium

The chemical element with an atomic number of 12. It is a light, easily flammable, silvery-white alkaline earth metal.

magnifique

(colloquial, North America, Australia) Excellent, exciting, remarkable.

magnifiquement

In a magnificent manner.

magnitude

(uncountable, countable) The absolute or relative size, extent or importance of something.

magnolia

(countable) The flower of a magnolia tree.

magnum

A bottle containing 1.5 liters of fluid, double the volume of a standard wine bottle.

magnum opus

The best, most popular, or most renowned achievement of an author or artist, representing their major life effort.

magot

A large amount of money.

magouillage

(countable, uncountable) Deception, deceit or underhanded behavior.

magouille

Deceitful tricks; trickery; games. [from mid 19th c.]

magouiller

(transitive) To obtain, arrange, or achieve by deceitful methods, by trickery.

Maguy

A en given name.

mah-jong

A game (originally Chinese) for four players, using a collection of tiles divided into five or six suits.

maharadja

A Hindu monarch ranking above a raja, an emperor.

maharaja

A Hindu monarch ranking above a raja, an emperor.

Maharashtra

A state in western India. Capitals: Mumbai (formerly known as Bombay) and Nagpur (winter capital).

mahdi

(Sunni, _, Islam) A leader who, according to Sunni eschatology, will appear and restore peace and justice before the end of the world. [from 17th c.]

Mahomet

(Islam, uncountable) The figure who introduced Islam, and the man to whom the Qur'an was revealed; considered a prophet by Muslims and Baháʼís.