Most Beautiful French Word(s)

[tulosai]

What are the most beautiful french words?

Which French words do you think are the most beautiful? Since the beauty of French is what drew me to the language to begin with I think about this a lot.

Some beautiful french words include:

1. Argent [English: silver]

2. Parapluie [English: umbrella]

3. Bijoux [English: Jewelry]

Definition of Bijoux:

noun, plural bijoux  [bee-zhooz, bee-zhooz] (Show IPA)

1. a jewel.

2. something small, delicate, and exquisitely wrought.

Origin of Bijoux: 1660-70; < French < Breton bizou (jeweled) ring, derivative of biz finger; cognate with Cornish bisou finger-ring, derivative of bis finger

(According to dictionary.com)

4. Cliché [English: stereotype]

Definition: Cliché is a actually a noun that derives from the verb clicher, meaning “to stereotype”, It is, in fact,  a past participle form used as a noun. The oxford Dictionary defines word as "a phrase or opinion that is overused and betrays a lack of original thought or a very predictable or unoriginal thing or person", cliché is one of the most beautiful french words that has entered the vocabulary of many other languages.

5. Amour [English: love]

6. Pamplemousse [English: Grapefruit]

Well, Pamplemousse simply stands for Grapefruit. I couldn't find any etymological info about the word.

7. Silhouette [English: silhouette]

8. 'Mise en Place' [English: ?]

Definition: I would like to add another of my favorite french word. It is actually not a word, it's more like a beautiful "phrase". It's called "mise en place". Mise en place -  is a beautiful French phrase which means "putting in place", more or less equivalent to the english phrasal verb  "set up". This beautiful phrase is used in professional kitchens to refer to organising and arranging the ingredients (meat, sauces, spices and so on) that a cook will require for the menu items that he or she expects to prepare during his/her shift. This beautiful little french phrase is also pretty popular in home kitchens, so it is also used by "amateur cooks" or basically by everyone who wants to use some fancy "cooking vocabulary".

[cefmac]

I can't think of any particularly beautiful French words off the top of my head, but one of my favourite French words in general is "pamplemousse", which means grapefruit. I just think it sounds cute!

[sayitwell]

There are so many that I do not know where to begin.

The word "couture" is nice sounding.  It means "sewing".

"decollete" means to show one's neck.  That always struck me as a beautiful word with a sweet meaning.

I love the expression "comme ci comme ça" meaning that one feels "so so".

I like the word "fantastique" meaning fantastic.  I have fun saying it in French.

[SueA555]

Pamplemousse is one of my favorites too. In fact, I named a parakeet that I had Pamplemousse because she was yellow.

[linguaholic]

I would like to add another of my favorite french word. It is actually not a word, it's more like a beautiful "phrase". It's called "mise en place". Mise en place -  is a beautiful French phrase which means "putting in place", more or less equivalent to the english phrasal verb  "set up". This beautiful phrase is used in professional kitchens to refer to organising and arranging the ingredients (meat, sauces, spices and so on) that a cook will require for the menu items that he or she expects to prepare during his/her shift. This beautiful little french phrase is also pretty popular in home kitchens, so it is also used by "amateur cooks" or basically by everyone who wants to use some fancy "cooking vocabulary" :=))

[BWL]

I love chuchoter (to whisper) and murmurer (to murmur) they really evoke the sensations of and sounds of whispering and murmuring.

Also "choisisser" meaning "to choose". The action of your tongue as it moves back and forth while pronouncing this word mimics the actions of your hands when you choose and select something.

[SpringBreeze]

Hmmh... that's a good question... I've never thought about it... Hmmh...

L'amour — Love

La fleur — Flower

Le papillon — Butterfly

Silhouette — Outline, contour

When I think of more, I'll definitely add them to the list.

[pandandesign]

I couldn't think of any word out of my head too because I haven't taken French for a long time. I remember it was about 10 years ago when I took French, which I was a high school student. I do see that French is a beautiful language, but I didn't really take the time to learn French.

[linguaholic]

Most beautiful french words / phrases

Another french word, which is commonly cited as one of the most beautiful french words is "noir". It stands for black in English. You might know about "Le chat noir", (French pronunciation: ​[lə ʃa nwaʁ] ; French for "The Black Cat"), which was a nineteenth-century entertainment establishment, in the bohemian Montmartre district of Paris. Moreover you might have heard of "Le Pinot Noir", (French: [pino nwaʁ]), which is a black wine grape variety of the species Vitis vinifera.

More beautiful french words and/or phrases anyone?

[linguaholic]

Another beautiful french word is Papillon. The french word papillon stands for Butterfly. The word "Papillon" actually comes from the Latin word  "papilionem".

[linguaholic]

We have already seen a lot of beautiful french words. Why not add a few beautiful french quotes then? Here we go:

English: Man's greatest weakness is his love of life.

French: Le plus grand faible des hommes, c'est l'amour qu'ils ont de la vie. [ Molière ]

English: It is difficult to master your passions and impossible to satisfy them.

French: Il est difficle de vaincre ses passions, et impossible de les satisfaire. [ De La Sabliére ]

English: I have often regretted having spoken, but never for having not.

French: Je me suis souvent repenti d'avoir parlé, mais jamais de m'être tu. [ De Commynes ]

English: There is only one happiness in life, to love and be loved.

French: Il n'y a qu'un bonheur dans la vie, c'est d'aimer et d'être aimé.

English: What man fears most is what suits him.

French: Ce que l'homme redoute le plus, c'est ce qui lui convient. [ Henri Frédéric Amiel ]

English: I reinvented the past to see the beauty of the future.

French: J'ai réinventé le passé pour voir la beauté de l'avenir. [ Louis Aragon ]

Please do not hesitate to post your favorite and most beautiful french quotations, phrases and/or words in here.

[Emmanuel]

I really like "parapluie". To me, that word embodies the whole range of the french language. It's a very difficult word to pronounce for non french speakers.

[Cielosur]

I like the word "tournesol".  It means sunflower. 

[RicardoRodrigues]

I have to love "croissant" and "papillon". (Butterfly) They sound awesome when pronounced in French. It's such a sweet language.

[TEFL-Commando]

One of my favourite French words is 'Santé' which is normally said at a toast before a meal. Directly translated it means 'Health' but colloquially it can mean 'Cheers'.

[TEFL-Commando]

Another nice French word to say is 'Pression', as in 'Je voudrais une bière à la pression, s'il vous plait'.

'Pression' is translated in English as 'Draught/Draft', as in 'Draught/Draft Beer'.

[UrsaMarron]

One of my favourite pleasant words is "plage," which means "beach."  That words simply sounds nicer in Latin languages.

I like other words "rouge(red)," poisson(fish)," and livre(book)."