French–English dictionary

fœtal

(embryology) Pertaining to, or connected with, a fetus.

fœticide

(dysphemistic) The killing of a fetus or embryo; an induced abortion. [from 19th century]

fœtus

An unborn or unhatched vertebrate showing signs of the mature animal.

foi

(uncountable) Religious faith.

foin

trouble; troublesome business; fuss, commotion

foire

A fair or temporary market, often for charity.

foirer

(transitive) To incompetently perform (a task); to ruin (something) through incompetent action; to botch up, to bumble.

foireux

(computing, slang) Incorrect, useless, or broken.

fois

(countable) A measurement of a quantity of time; a numerical or general indication of a length of progression.

foisonner

To be stocked to overflowing.

folâtre

Characterised or marked by frolicking; playful.

folâtrer

(intransitive) To make merry; to have fun; to romp; to behave playfully and uninhibitedly. [from 1580s]

folie

Foolishness that results from a lack of foresight or lack of practicality.

folivore

(biology) A herbivore that eats mostly foliage.

folle

(slang, countable) An insane or eccentric person; a crackpot.

follement

(usually with in love) Hopelessly; madly; to distraction; deeply; utterly.

follower

(social media) An account holder who subscribes to see content from another account on a social media platform.

fomenter

(transitive) To incite or cause troublesome acts; to encourage; to instigate.

foncé

(of colour) Dull or deeper in hue; not bright or light.

foncedalle

(slang, with the definite article) Hunger, especially a craving for food as a result of cannabis or alcohol consumption.

foncedé

(informal) Intoxicated; under the influence of a mood-altering drug, formerly usually alcohol, but now (from the mid-20th century) usually not alcohol but rather marijuana, cocaine, heroin, etc.

foncée

(of a color or flavour) Highly saturated; rich.

foncer

To move rapidly straight ahead, especially in an uncontrolled way.

fonceur

Bold, daring, and tough.

foncièrement

In a fundamental, essential or basic manner.

fonction

A relation where one thing is dependent on another for its existence, value, or significance.

fonction de rappel

(programming) A function pointer passed as an argument to another function.

fonctionnaire

A person employed in the civil service; a government employee.

fonctionnalité

(computing) A beneficial capability of a piece of software.

fonctionnariat

The people elected to government or employed in the civil service.

fonctionnel

Practical and functional, present for use, not just for show.

fonctionnelle

Practical and functional, present for use, not just for show.

fonctionnement

(uncountable) The method by which a device performs its function.

fonctionner

(intransitive) To carry out a function; to be in action.

fond

The rear of the body, especially the part between the neck and the end of the spine and opposite the chest and belly.

fond d'écran

(computing) A type of activity on a computer that is not normally visible to the user.

fond de cale

(nautical) The lowest inner part of a ship's hull, where water accumulates.

fond de teint

(cosmetics) Cosmetic cream roughly skin-colored, designed to make the face appear uniform in color and texture.

fond marin

The floor or bottom of the sea or ocean.

fond perdu

(printing) A narrow edge around a page layout, to be printed but cut off afterwards (added to allow for slight misalignment, especially with pictures that should run to the edge of the finished sheet).

fondamental

Being in the basic form; showing its essence.

fondamentalement

In a fundamental or basic sense; reaching the very core of the matter.

fondamentalisme

(religion) The tendency to reduce a religion to its most fundamental tenets, based on strict interpretation of core texts.

fondamentaliste

One who reduces religion to strict interpretation of core or original texts.

fondant

(chiefly, _, uncountable) A type of very sweet candy or confection, usually made from sugar, butter, and milk or cream.

fondateur

One who founds or establishes (a company, project, organisation, state, etc.).

fondateurs

One who founds or establishes (a company, project, organisation, state, etc.).

fondation

That upon which anything is founded; that on which anything stands, and by which it is supported; the lowest and supporting layer of a superstructure; underbuilding.

fondations

(architecture) The lowest and supporting part or member of a wall, including the base course and footing courses; in a frame house, the whole substructure of masonry.

fondatrice

One who founds or establishes (a company, project, organisation, state, etc.).

fondé

Having a basis.

fondé de pouvoir

(US, legal) An agent of the person giving him/her the power of attorney (for a specific purpose or for general purposes) to act on his or her behalf. The attorney-in-fact’s power and responsibilities depend on the specific powers granted in the power of attorney document.

fondement

That upon which anything is founded; that on which anything stands, and by which it is supported; the lowest and supporting layer of a superstructure; underbuilding.

fonder

(transitive) To develop or give form to (something) according to a plan or process.

fonderie

A facility that melts metals in special furnaces and pours the molten metal into molds to make products. Foundries are usually specified according to the type of metal dealt with: iron foundry, brass foundry, etc.

fondeur

The iron worker in charge of the blast furnace and the smelting operation.

fondre

(music) To transition from one piece or section of music to another without stopping.

fondre sur

(intransitive) To attack suddenly by leaping.

fonds

The monetary assets of a person or organization.

fonds communs

(finance) A form of collective investment in which money from many investors is pooled and invested in stocks, bonds, short-term money market instruments, or other securities under the direction of a fund manager.

fonds mutuel

(finance) A form of collective investment in which money from many investors is pooled and invested in stocks, bonds, short-term money market instruments, or other securities under the direction of a fund manager.

fonds spéculatif

(finance) Any unregistered investment fund, often characterised by unconventional strategies (i.e., strategies other than investing long only in bonds, equities or money markets).

fondue

A dish made of melted cheese, or chocolate etc., or of a boiling liquid into which food can be dipped.

fongible

(originally, finance, and, commerce) Able to be substituted for something of equal value or utility.

fongique

Of or pertaining to a fungus or fungi.

fongus

(mycology) Any member of the kingdom Fungi; a eukaryotic organism typically having chitin cell walls but no chlorophyll or plastids. Fungi may be unicellular or multicellular.

font

(chiefly, poetic, dated, or, archaic) ; a spring. [from late 16th c.]

fontaine

(chiefly, poetic, dated, or, archaic) ; a spring. [from late 16th c.]

fontanelle

(anatomy) A soft membraneous spot on the head of a baby due to incomplete fusion of the cranial bones.

fonte

A hard and brittle, but strong, alloy of iron, carbon, and silicon, formed by casting in a mould.

fonte de caractères

(typography) The particular design of some type, font, or a font family.

fonts

(Christianity) A receptacle in a church for holy water, especially one used in baptism.

foodie

(colloquial) A person with a special interest in or knowledge of food, a gourmet.

foot

(countable) The ball used in any game called "football".

football

A team sport similar to rugby football, played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end.

football australien

A variety of football devised in Australia, played on an oval field with an oval ball that players try to kick between the goalposts or between a central and outer post.

footballeur

(American football, US, uncommon, dated) One who plays American football.

footballeuse

(American football, US, uncommon, dated) One who plays American football.

footing

The practice of running at a relatively slow pace for exercise.

forain

(informal, countable) A person who works in a carnival (often one who uses exaggerated showmanship or fraud).

forçable

Able to be forced.

forcé

Exaggerated and likely to be forced or insincere. (of a smile or grin)

force brute

(computer science) A method of computation wherein the computer is let to try all permutations of a problem until one is found that provides a solution, in contrast to the implementation of a more intelligent algorithm.

force de frappe

A body of forces equipped for war.

force de l'âge

(rare) Full bloom or reproductive maturity.

force majeure

(legal) An unforeseen occurrence beyond one's control, such as a natural disaster.

force navale

(countable) A country's entire maritime military force, including ships and personnel.

forcené

Maddened; driven insane.

forceps

An instrument used in surgery or medical procedures for grasping and holding objects, similar to tongs or pincers.

forcer

(transitive, computing) To force an attribute, normally of a data type, to take on the attribute of another data type.

forces

(countable) A group organized for the goal of attacking, controling, or constraining, especially one with a set command structure (in particular, a military or police group).

forces armées

A body of forces equipped for war.

forces vives

(figuratively) That which is required for continued existence or function.

forensique

Relating to the use of science and technology in the investigation and establishment of facts or evidence in a court of law.

forer

(transitive) To create (a hole) by removing material with a drill (tool).

forestier

Covered in forest.

forestière

(forestry) A person who practices forestry.

forêt

A dense uncultivated tract of trees and undergrowth, larger than woods.

forêt tropicale

A large, undeveloped, humid forest, especially in a tropical region, that is home to many wild plants and animals; a tropical rainforest.

forêt vierge

A large, undeveloped, humid forest, especially in a tropical region, that is home to many wild plants and animals; a tropical rainforest.

foreuse

The portion of a drilling tool that drives the bit.

forfait

A group, set, or unit.

forfait mobile

A subscription to a service.

forfaitaire

(chiefly, UK) With everything included.

forficule

Any of various insects of the order Dermaptera that have elongated bodies, large membranous wings folded underneath short leathery forewings and a pair of large pincers protruding from the rear of the abdomen.

forge

A workshop in which metals are shaped by heating and hammering them.

forger

(by extension) To make or fabricate (especially a word or phrase).

forgeron

A person who forges iron.

forgeronne

A person who forges iron.

forgeur

A person who forges metals.

fork

Such a pronged tool having a long straight handle, generally for two-handed use, as used for digging, lifting, mucking, pitching, etc.

formaldéhyde

(organic compound) The simplest aldehyde, HCHO, a colourless gas that has many industrial applications; it dissolves in water to give formol (10%) and formalin.

formaliser

(transitive) To give something a definite form; to shape.

formaliste

Characterized by a method of expression generally found in books.

formans

A language unit, typically a morph, that has a morphological function (that is, forming a word from a root or another word).

formant

(physics, phonetics) A band of frequencies, in a sound spectrum, that have a greater intensity; they determine the quality of a sound; especially the characteristic sounds of the consonants.

formater

(transitive, computing) To reset or unset; to return to an empty state or to zero.

formateur

Of or pertaining to the formation and subsequent growth of something.

formatif

Of or pertaining to the formation and subsequent growth of something.

formation

(sports) Collectively, the members of a team.

forme

In good health, unharmed.

formel

In accordance with established forms.

former

(transitive) To arrange in order or formation.

formidable

(informal) Possessing uniquely wonderful qualities; very good.

Formose

A partly-recognized country in East Asia consisting of a main island and 167 smaller islands. Official name: Republic of China. Capital: Taipei. [from 20th c.]

formulaire

A blank document or template to be filled in by the user.

formulation

The act, process, or result of formulating or reducing to a formula.

formule magique

(idiomatic) A simple remedy for a difficult or complex problem, especially a cure for a disease.

formuler

(transitive) To explain; to put into words; to make something specific.

fornicateur

An unmarried person who engages in sexual intercourse, especially when considered to be of an illicit or illegal nature.

fornication

(religion, law) Sexual intercourse by people who are not married to each other, or which is considered illicit in another way.

fornicatrice

An unmarried person who engages in sexual intercourse, especially when considered to be of an illicit or illegal nature.

forniquer

(transitive, , intransitive, US, vulgar) To have sexual intercourse (with).

forniqueur

An unmarried person who engages in sexual intercourse, especially when considered to be of an illicit or illegal nature.

fort

With a loud voice, or great noise; loudly; audibly.

fortement

In a powerful manner.

forteresse

A fortified place; a large and permanent fortification, sometimes including a town; for example a fort, a castle; a stronghold; a place of defense or security.

fortifier

To increase the defences of (an army, soldiers, etc.), or put (it or them) in a defensive position.

fortissimo

(music) Indicating that the piece is to be played very loudly.

fortitude

Mental or emotional strength that enables courage in the face of adversity.

fortuit

Happening by chance.

fortuite

Happening by a lucky chance; lucky or fortunate.

fortuitement

In a fortuitous manner; in a manner of happening by chance; coincidentally; accidentally.

Fortuna

(Roman god) The Roman goddess of luck, fortune and fate, equivalent to the Greek goddess Tyche.

fortuné

Excessively or extremely large or wealthy.

forum de Davos

(metonymy) An annual meeting of business leaders, major politicians, economists, and other celebrities hosted by the World Economic Forum in the town of Davos, Switzerland at the end of January.

fosse

An underground pit where sewage is held.

fosse d'aisances

A hollow or pit into which liquid drains, such as a cesspool, cesspit or sink.

fosse d’aisance

An underground pit where sewage is held.

fosse septique

A cesspool; a pit or covered cistern used to collect sewage and waste water.