French loanwords used in English

Tired of the usual clichés and want to add a little je ne sais quoi to your diction?

The English language is full of words of French origin. Most of these have changed and mutated over the centuries - some of them unrecognisably so. But others haven’t changed at all.

Many words in English - what we call loanwords - are taken directly from French, without any changes having developed in their spelling, pronunciation or meaning. You'll often see loanwords written in italics, and these nifty additions to English tend to be more recent arrivals than most words of French etymology. While the vast majority of French-origin words used in English today came along with the Norman Conquest of England in the 11th century, or in the ensuing centuries as French became a language of prestige throughout Europe, most of what we consider to be direct French loanwords entered English during the 18th century and afterwards as the French language and culture grew in influence.

Unlike earlier French-derived words, these newer loanwords were generally left untouched - that is to say, they were not respelled to fit English spelling conventions. Nor have they undergone the organic changes in spelling or pronunciation that were typical of more common, everyday words. In fact, most French loanwords are terms used to describe very specific things - things which we often don't have expressions for in English.

Take déjà vu, for example. Literally it translates to 'before seen', and refers to the sensation you experience when your memory tricks you into feeling like you've been through a situation already before. The term was coined in French in 1876, and quickly entered the lexicon of other European languages, including Spanish, Dutch, Norwegian - and English.

Another French phrase used in English is raison d'être, meaning 'reason for being'. Unlike 'before seen', it's perfectly acceptable to say 'reason for being' in English; but raison d'être has a quality of sophistication that makes it the preferred choice even among English speakers.

So you can see there a couple of reasons why we use French loanwords in English. Either they represent a meaning for which we don't already have a word or phrase in English, or they simply sound better.

Below is a list of French loanwords used in English. By learning these words and phrases, you'll not only be expanding your vocabulary in not just French but in English too!

Masculine

le café

le chauffeur

le genre

le résumé

le souvenir

le buffet

le fiancé(e)

le cliché

le sabotage

le montage

le garage

le camouflage

le mirage

le dossier

le bouquet

le plateau

le corsage

le croissant

le rendez-vous

Feminine

la cuisine

la façade

la silhouette

la brochure

la roulette

la niche

la riposte

With elision

l’élite

l’ennui

l’entrée

l’étiquette

les hors-d’œuvre (a small starter)

le déjà vu (an illusory feeling of having already experienced something)

le coup de grâce (a final decisive blow)

le tour de force (an impressive achievement)

la raison d’être (reason for being)

la carte blanche (full freedom to act)

le faux pas (a social mistake)

le tête-à-tête (a private conversation)

la pièce de résistance (the main highlight)

For more French phrases used in English, check out our blog on the topic.