French
Meanings
- The language of France, shared by the neighboring countries Belgium, Monaco, and Switzerland and by former French colonies around the world.
- The ability of a person to communicate in French.
- French language and literature as an object of study.
- Vulgar language.
- A surname originating as an ethnonym.
- The people of France; groups of French people.
- Synonym of oral sex, especially fellatio.
- Ellipsis of French vermouth, a type of dry vermouth.
- A French person.
- Of or relating to France.
- Of or relating to the people or culture of France.
- Of or relating to the French language.
- Of or related to oral sex, especially fellatio.
- Used to form names or references to venereal diseases.
- Used to form names or references to an unconventional or fancy style.
- Alternative letter-case form of french.
- To prepare food by cutting it into strips.
- To kiss (another person) while inserting one’s tongue into the other person's mouth.
- To kiss in this manner.
- To French trim; to stylishly expose bone by removing the fat and meat covering it (as done to a rack of lamb or bone-in rib-eye steak).
Pronunciation
Word forms
Etymology
Etymology tree Proto-Germanic *frankô Proto-West Germanic *Frankō Proto-Indo-European *-iskos Proto-Germanic *-iskaz Proto-West Germanic *-isk Proto-West Germanic *Frankisk Old English Frencisċder. Middle English Frensch English French Inherited from Middle English Frenche, Frensch, Frensc, Frenshe, Frenk, Franche, from Old English Frenċisċ (“Frankish, French”), from Proto-West Germanic *Frankisk (“Frankish”), equivalent to Frank + -ish (compare Frankish). Cognate with Middle Low German vranksch, frenkisch, vrenkesch, vrenksch (“Frankish, French”), Middle High German vrenkisch, vrensch ("Frankish, Franconian; > German fränkisch (“Frankish, Franconian”)), Danish fransk (“French”), Swedish fransk, fransysk (“French”), Icelandic franska (“French”). Doublet of Frankish; piecewise doublet of Francis, Franz, and Francisco, which are derived from Late Latin Franciscus In reference to vulgar language, from expressions such as pardon my French in the early 19th century, originally in reference to actual (but often mildly impolite) French expressions by the upper class, subsequently adopted ironically by the lower class for English curse words under the charitable conceit that the listener would not be familiar with them. In reference to vermouth, a shortened form of French vermouth, distinguished as usually being drier than Italian vermouth.