FRENCH

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

IPA (US):

 Dictionary entry overview: What does French mean? 

• FRENCH (noun)
  The noun FRENCH has 3 senses:

1. the Romance language spoken in France and in countries colonized by France

2. the people of France

3. United States sculptor who created the seated marble figure of Abraham Lincoln in the Lincoln Memorial in Washington D.C. (1850-1931)

  Familiarity information: FRENCH used as a noun is uncommon.

• FRENCH (adjective)
  The adjective FRENCH has 1 sense:

1. of or pertaining to France or the people of France

  Familiarity information: FRENCH used as an adjective is very rare.

• FRENCH (verb)
  The verb FRENCH has 1 sense:

1. cut (e.g, beans) lengthwise in preparation for cooking

  Familiarity information: FRENCH used as a verb is very rare.

 Dictionary entry details 

• FRENCH (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

The Romance language spoken in France and in countries colonized by France

Classified under:

Nouns denoting communicative processes and contents

Hypernyms ("French" is a kind of...):

Latinian language; Romance; Romance language (the group of languages derived from Latin)

Domain region:

France; French Republic (a republic in western Europe; the largest country wholly in Europe)

Domain member usage:

noblesse oblige (the obligation of those of high rank to be honorable and generous (often used ironically))

patois (a regional dialect of a language (especially French); usually considered substandard)

eminence grise ((French) a person who exercises power or influence in certain areas without holding an official position)

fin de siecle (the end of a century, especially the 19th century)

fin-de-siecle; fin de siecle (relating to or characteristic of the end of a century (especially the end of the 19th century))

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "French"):

Langue d'oil; Langue d'oil French (medieval provincial dialects of French spoken in central and northern France)

Langue d'oc; Langue d'oc French (medieval provincial dialects of French formerly spoken in the south of France)

Old French (the earliest form of the French language; 9th to 15th century)

Norman-French; Norman French; Old North French (the medieval Norman dialect of Old French)

Anglo-French; Anglo-Norman (the French (Norman) language used in medieval England)

Canadian French (the French language as spoken in Quebec, Canada)

Walloon (a dialect of French spoken in Belgium and adjacent parts of France)

Domain member usage:

fin-de-siecle (marked by excessive self-indulgence and moral decay)

Sense 2

Meaning:

The people of France

Classified under:

Nouns denoting people

Synonyms:

French; French people

Hypernyms ("French" is a kind of...):

country; land; nation (the people who live in a nation or country)

Derivation:

Frenchify (become French in appearance or character)

Frenchify (make French in appearance or character)

Sense 3

Meaning:

United States sculptor who created the seated marble figure of Abraham Lincoln in the Lincoln Memorial in Washington D.C. (1850-1931)

Classified under:

Nouns denoting people

Synonyms:

Daniel Chester French; French

Instance hypernyms:

carver; sculptor; sculpturer; statue maker (an artist who creates sculptures)

• FRENCH (adjective)

Sense 1

Meaning:

Of or pertaining to France or the people of France

Classified under:

Relational adjectives (pertainyms)

Synonyms:

French; Gallic

Context example:

a Gallic shrug

Pertainym:

France (a republic in western Europe; the largest country wholly in Europe)

• FRENCH (verb)

Sense 1

Meaning:

Cut (e.g, beans) lengthwise in preparation for cooking

Classified under:

Verbs of touching, hitting, tying, digging

Context example:

French the potatoes

Hypernyms (to "French" is one way to...):

cut (shorten as if by severing the edges or ends of)

Sentence frame:

Somebody ----s something

 Context examples 

MASCOT was developed jointly by the German Aerospace Center and the French space agency CNES.

(First Ever Video of Asteroid Sent Back to Earth by Japanese Rovers, The Titi Tudorancea Bulletin)

The study uses the popular French baby toy "Sophie the Giraffe" as an example.

(Study: Popularity of Wildlife Can Harm Public's Perception, VOA)

Research on French green clays, however, spurred testing of other clays with likely antibacterial properties.

(New answer to MRSA, other 'superbug' infections: clay minerals?, NSF)

The Committee on Space Research, which is based in the French capital of Paris, has been in charge of planetary defense since 1959.

(Mutated Terrestrial Bacteria That Return from Space Pose Threat to Life on Earth, The Titi Tudorancea Bulletin)

"A" is the third most common letter in English, and the second most common in Spanish and French.

(A, The Titi Tudorancea Bulletin)

Height: 12 inches (30cm.) There are two weight classes of French Bulldog: 19-22 pounds (9-10kg.) and 22-28 pounds (10-13kg.)

(French Bulldog, NCI Thesaurus)

A generally obsolete unit of length used in French speaking countries, equal to 1/12 pouce or 1/40 inch and corresponding closely to the English line.

(Ligne, NCI Thesaurus)

A group of islands in the South Pacific Ocean, east of Australia, between Tonga and French Polynesia.

(Cook Islands, NCI Thesaurus)

The Billy is named for the French city in which it was created.

(Billy, NCI Thesaurus)

They talked together on Swinburne and Rossetti, after which she led him beyond his depth into the by-paths of French literature.

(Martin Eden, by Jack London)