France word for beautiful

Beau / Belle.
Beautiful in French – Beau / Belle So “beautiful” in French is either beau for a man or belle for a woman (or masculine/feminine noun). To simplify it, you could say magnifique (“magnificent”), which is used to describe something or someone as very beautiful or striking.

What is the most beautiful French word?

Here are the most beautiful French words

• Papillon – butterfly.
• Parapluie – umbrella.
• Paupiette – a piece of meat, beaten thin, and rolled with a stuffing of vegetables, fruits or sweetmeats.
• Romanichel – gypsy.
• Silhouette – silhouette.
• Soirée – evening.
• Tournesol – sunflower.
• Vichyssoise – from vichy. Masculine, noun.

How do you call a beautiful girl in French?

beautiful girl

1. jolie fille, la ~ (f) Noun.
2. mannequin, le ~ (m) Noun.

Chouette (Cool, Pleasant, Friendly, Nice)
Chouette is common slang. It has the same masculine and feminine.

Does Beau mean beautiful?

Beau/belle is the most common way to say “beautiful” in French. Beau describes a masculine noun, and belle describes feminine noun. So to say “a beautiful woman”, you would say une belle femme. And to say “a beautiful man”, you would say un bel homme.

What is a French princess called?

dauphin, title of the eldest son of a king of France, the heir apparent to the French crown, from 1350 to 1830. The title was established by the royal house of France through the purchase of lands known as the Dauphiné in 1349 by the future Charles V.

How do you describe beauty in France?

If you want to say “beauty” in French, the word is literally “la beauté.” Trying to describe someone or something as beautiful? When describing a person or object, you would generally say “beau” for men (or masculine object) and “belle” for woman (or feminine object).

What does La Belle fille mean?

pretty girl noun. belle-fille. good-looking girl noun.

What does La Jolie fille mean?

pretty girl beautiful girl nice
Translation of “jolie fille” in English. Noun. pretty girl. beautiful girl. nice girl.

How do you say beautiful little girl in French?

She’s a beautiful little girl. C’est une belle petite fille.

How do you say amazing in French slang?

Translation of “that’s amazing!” in French. c’est incroyable ! c’est génial !

How do you say nice and feminine in French?

The French translation for “kind; nice (feminine singular)” is gentille.

What is French slang for cool?

18 – Lourd. Translated you will get the English word “heavy” but this French slang means “cool”.

Is Beautiful a French word?

Beautiful in French – Beau / Belle
As with Spanish, French has genders for words. So “beautiful” in French is either beau for a man or belle for a woman (or masculine/feminine noun).

What do we say Belle in English?

a woman or girl admired for her beauty and charm. the most beautiful, charming, or engaging woman or girl among a number: the belle of the ball.

What is the meaning of the French word belle?

: a popular and attractive girl or woman especially : a girl or woman whose charm and beauty make her a favorite the belle of the ball.

What does the name Dauphin mean?

: the eldest son of a king of France.

Who is the Dauphin in the King?

The Dauphin is the son of King Charles of France, and heir to the throne (Dauphin). He is a headstrong, impulsive, condescending and foolish young man who disregards King Henry entirely and pays the price for it.

What is a French king called?

During most of its history, France was ruled by kings. Four Carolingian monarchs were also Roman Emperors and the Bonapartes were Emperors of the French. This article lists all rulers to have held the title “King of Franks”, “King of France”, “King of the French” or “Emperor of the French”.

What is the most beautiful word?

The Top 10 Most Beautiful English Words

1. 1 Sequoia (n.) (A seven-letter word that has the letter Q and all five vowels) A redwood tree, especially the California redwood.
2. 2 Euphoria (n.)
3. 3 Pluviophile (n.)
4. 4 Clinomania (n.)
5. 5 Idyllic (adj.)
6. 6 Aurora (n.)
7. 7 Solitude (n.)
8. 8 Supine (adj.)

How do you compliment a girl in French?

Compliments In French

1. You are cute! — Tu es mignonne !
2. You have beautiful eyes. — Tu as de beaux yeux.
3. You are very nice. — Tu es très sympa.
4. I love your smile, it’s so charming.
5. I like your new haircut.
6. I like this color, it really suits you!
7. That’s what I call smart!
8. You are a great cook!

19th-century French poet Charles Baudelaire once wrote Le beau est toujours bizarre. (The beautiful is always bizarre). Although he wasn’t talking about the word beau itself, he might as well have been.

Beau and its feminine form, belle are the French words for “beautiful” or, depending on the context, “handsome”. 

That seems pretty straightforward. But the more you use them or see them used, the more you realize that there are a lot of rules they don’t follow, and a lot of other rules that exist only for them and a handful of other bizarre adjectives.

Intrigued? Let’s discover how to say “beautiful” in French!

Beau/belle is the most common way to say “beautiful” in French. Beau describes a masculine noun, and belle describes feminine noun.

So to say “a beautiful woman”, you would say une belle femme. And to say “a beautiful man”, you would say un bel homme.

Similarly you would say: 

Cet arbre est très beau en automne.

This tree is beautiful in autumn.)

Quelle belle robe !

What a beautiful dress!

If you didn’t know that this pair was just the masculine and feminine version of the same adjective, don’t feel bad. After all, normally in French, when an adjective modifies a singular noun, it stays the same if the nouns is masculine, or an “e” is added if the noun is feminine. For example: un chat bleu/ une rose bleue (a blue cat/a blue rose).  

Not so for beau and belle, masculine and feminine forms that look very different from one another!

But when it comes to beau/belle’s strangeness, that’s just the beginning. You will learn more about this in the second part of this article.

How to properly use beau/belle

Beau/belle comes before the noun it modifies

In the second example a few paragraphs back, you may have noticed another bizarre thing about beau/belle: Although most French adjectives follow the noun(s) they describe, beau/belle comes before the noun it describes, not after. 

So, you would never see something like, un garçon beau or une fille belle – it would always be written or said un beau garçon or une belle fille.

Beau changes in the plural form 

We’re not finished with beau/belle’s bizarreness just yet!

Beau changes its appearance when agreeing with different kinds of nouns. 

Normally in French, if an adjective modifies a plural noun or group of nouns where even one is masculine, an “s” is tacked onto it. If the noun/group of nouns is feminine, you add “-es” to the end, and call it a day.

des renards malins/des souris malines

clever foxes/clever mice

Belle, the feminine form of beau, follows these rules just fine. If you have a feminine noun, just use belle as-is, since it’s already feminine. If there’s a plural noun or a group of all-feminine nouns, just add an “-s” to it.

Hélène est belle, et ses sœurs Rachel, Laure, Sarah, et Christine sont belles aussi.

Helene is beautiful, and her sisters Rachel, Laure, and Christine are beautiful, too.

C’est une belle maison./Ce sont de belles maisons.

That’s a beautiful house./Those are beautiful houses.

But, like so many romantic heroes it could be used to describe, beau is a rebel. 

When beau modifies a singular masculine noun, it stays as-is, since it’s already in its masculine form.

But when it modifies a plural masculine noun or a group of nouns where at least one of the nouns is masculine, you add, not an “s”, but an “x” at the end. 

Jean-Charles est beau, et ses frères Henri, Loïc, et Romain sont beaux aussi.

Jean-Charles is handsome, and his brothers Henri, Loïc, and Romain are handsome, too.

C’est un beau tableau./Ce sont de beaux tableaux.

That’s a beautiful painting./These are beautiful paintings.

Okay, this isn’t actually that strange; beau simply follows a rule of pluralizing French words that end in “-eau” with an “x”, instead of an “s”. Still, it is one more thing to pay attention to when you’re using it in writing. 

Beau changes to bel when it’s followed by a noun that starts with a vowel

Beau isn’t always the same even when it’s modifying a singular noun.

When it precedes a singular masculine noun that starts with a vowel, beau becomes bel. 

Here are a few examples:    

• un bel oiseau (a beautiful bird)
• un bel oeuf (a beautiful egg)
• notre bel Étienne (our lovely/handsome Étienne)

Note that beau ONLY becomes bel when it precedes a noun. If the structure of the sentence or phrase separates beau from the noun it’s modifying, it’s always beau, whether the noun starts with a vowel or not.

For example: 

C’est un bel écureuil.

That’s a beautiful squirrel.

Je trouve cet écureuil particulièrement beau.

I find this squirrel especially beautiful.

If this rule is blowing your mind, take a deep breath and remember that it’s not as uncommon as you might think. After all, even in that last example, another word followed the same rule: ce has a t added to it because ce followed by a vowel sound is ugly to the French ear, too.

The indefinite article des becomes de when it precedes beau/belle

You’ve probably spent many hours of your French learning experience drilling the fact that des is the main French plural indefinite article into your head. 

Well…here’s another exception when it comes to beau/belle.

Essentially, French grammar dictates  that when an adjective precedes the noun it’s modifying, des can’t be used. Instead, it has to be de.  That’s why the examples that I marked with an asterisk aren’t typos.

So, to recap: You may think you should say Ce sont des beaux livres or Ce sont des belles robes BUT NO! It’s Ce sont de beaux livres and Ce sont de belles robes.

This remains the rule with most adverbs. For example, Ce sont de très beaux livres or Ce sont de très belles robes.

Note that this rule doesn’t necessarily apply to spoken French. In oral language, using des with this kind of sentence structure is generally accepted (although not officially grammatically correct). But in writing, you should always use de.

Using adverbs with beau/belle: Generally easy, with a  few exceptions

What if you want to say that someone or something is more than just beautiful or handsome?

Generally speaking, if you add an adverb to beau/belle and a noun, you would just place it before beau/belle.  This will make the phrase’s structure change slightly, by pushing beau/belle after the noun it modifies – for example,  un garçon terriblement beau/une fille terriblement belle.

But there is an exception with what is probably the most common adverb you’d use – très. In this case, you’d keep the structure the same as it was without an adverb: un très beau garcon/une très belle fille.

This works the same way in the plural: des garçons terriblement beaux/des filles terriblement belles or de très beaux garçons/de très belles filles.

There are also a few adverbs that seem to se balader (walk around). For example, you could say » Jamais tu n’as vu une fille si belle » , as French crooner Eddy Mitchell sings.  But you could also say, “Tu es une si belle fille.”

The first statement is a general one, with no particular context unto itself, just “Never have you seen such a beautiful girl.”/”Never have you seen a girl so beautiful.”.

But using un/une si beau/belle [noun] is almost always part of a larger statement, and implies that the person is so beautiful or handsome, they shouldn’t waste their life or make what the speaker considers a serious mistake. For example :

Tu es si belle, Marilyn, tu ne devrais pas te contenter de rester avec lui.

You’re so beautiful, Marilyn – you shouldn’t settle for him.

2 other ways to say “beautiful” in French

As I mentioned earlier, there are no other exact equivalents of “beautiful/handsome” in French, due to the French love of precision. So, you could choose words like magnifique, ravissant(e), impressionnant(e), etc., depending on what exactly makes you think the person or thing you’re talking about is beautiful.

Most of these adjectives follow the general rule of coming after the noun they modify, not before like beau/belle.

Here are two common “beautiful”-related words that you’ll hear or see quite a lot:

1. Joli(e) – Pretty

Pretty. In many cultures, the concept of “pretty” is usually used for a female or a baby or very young child of either gender. This is true for joli, as well. The masculine form is mainly used for describing animals, objects, and ideas whose grammatical gender is masculine.  For example: un joli cheval; un joli uniforme.

Note that joli(e) is another exceptional adjective that comes before the noun it modifies. This means that it follows the same grammar rules as beau/belle when it comes to using de instead of des.

On the other hand, when using most adverbs, you can place joli(e) in various parts of a sentence. For example: Ce sont de très jolis lapins/Ce sont des lapins très jolis. Notice that in the second example, des is used, since jolis no longer directly precedes the noun it’s modifying.

Examples:

• Quel joli tissu ! (What a pretty fabric!)
• C’est une jolie fille. (She’s a pretty girl.)
• Ce sont de jolis bijous. (These are pretty jewels)
• Regarde ces jolies jupes. (Look at these pretty skirts.)

You can sometimes hear “Joli!” as a sarcastic way to say “Good one!” – for example, if a friend trips while coming into the room. It’s usually a gentle context, not particularly mean.

Another common expression is joli(e) comme un cœur (pretty as a heart). This is like it sounds: a sweet, almost saccharine expression, so you won’t hear a virile action star use it, but it’s very common for women and children to say – usually about women, children, and animals, or fairytale princesses.

2. Canon

If you hang around young people or people who use a lot of slang in general, you’re bound to hear this word.  

Canon is an interesting mix of the old and new school: Although it’s a recent term and very informal, it refers to the canon of beauty, which is a classic concept.  

Note that because it refers to le canon, you keep it the same whether you’re talking about a male or female.  Also note that, unlike beau/belle or joli(e), canon is used only to describe a person.

Il est canon, ce mec.

This guy is so hot.

Elle est trop canon.

She’s amazingly good-looking.

Note that there are two slang elements here: canon and the use of trop instead of très. Traditional French culture tends to downplay emotions and opinions (Proof: Saying something is pas mal means it’s actually pretty good).

Here are a few other ways to say that someone is beautiful in French:

• sublime – sublime
• ravissant / ravissante – ravishing
• magnifique – magnificent
• splendide (splendid)
• mignon / mignone – cute

Note that nowadays, if you say someone is sublime or magnifique to a French person, you might hear them giggle or repeat what you said in a strange accent. If this happens, they’re probably making a reference to Christina Cordula, a Brazilian former model who hosts several reality competition shows here. The French adore her way of pronouncing these words (you can hear her at the 1:36 minute mark of this video). 

For more ways to say “beautiful” in French, you can do an online search for “Façons de dire belle” or “Façons de dire beau”.

What do the French think is beautiful?

The French have a reputation for excellent taste and being aesthetically gifted. While that can be true, reality TV and everyday life show that there are probably even more French people who like flashy fashion or have taste that many would dub “questionable”. 

Nevertheless, there is an aesthetic that seems to be an ideal in French culture — but it may not be what you think. We’re often fed images of glamorous Parisians, and while those do exist, the French seem to prize a more natural look and a sort offhand, casual elegance. Take French fashion icons like Inès de La Fressange or Mademoiselle Agnès – they’re natural-looking women with a chic yet laidback style, not polished top models in haute couture. 

The same goes for things like home décor. The ideal aesthetic in France (though not necessarily what most French people actually follow) is subtle, rather than bold and flashy.  French interiors that are up-to-date tend to privilege clean lines, open spaces, and touches of color. 

The popular house-flipping show Maison à vendre is an excellent thing to watch to get a glimpse of how many French people inhabit and decorate their homes…and what the people they’re trying to sell them to see as an ideal. You can watch some episodes of it on YouTube, by typing “Maison a vendre, Stephane Plaza complet”.

It’s funny that the French seem to be more open-minded when it comes to physical beauty. One of the things I love about French culture is that while you can definitely find people who appreciate the looks of your average Hollywood starlet, and while being thin is considered an ideal, anyone who is charming will win the tastemakers over, at least. 

This means there is a certain appreciation for someone with imperfect teeth, like Vanessa Paradis, someone who’s a bit curvy or heavyset but utterly unique looking, like Beth Ditto, or someone with a dramatic presence and style, like Grace Jones.

Although there are shallow and vain French people and mean teenagers, the fact that the French as a whole seem to recognize different kinds of beauty always makes me happy, because personally, that’s how I see the world, too. 

It’s also a tie to the past. Whether you’re talking about the French notion of beauty, or the word itself, what Baudelaire wrote nearly two hundred still hold true among many French people today: there is conventional beauty, but there’s also the kind that’s perfectly summed up by the lines Le beau est toujours bizarre  – a beauty that comes from being intriguing, surprising, even sometimes inspiring.

Who or what in France or French culture do you think is beau, belle, or even trop canon? 

With a culture known for its beautiful language, beautiful people, and beautiful food, learning how to say beautiful in French will serve you well.

Luckily, the word beautiful in French is one of the first things you’ll learn if you ever take a French class. But, it’s also one of the most common words you’ll find in the French language, which means there are a lot of opportunities to understand it better.

That being said, there are a few things to remember when using the word beautiful in French. Like many French adjectives, its form changes depending on whether it’s masculine/feminine or singular/plural.

So, whether you’re here to captivate your crush or crush your French exam, let’s dive in. 

How to Say Beautiful in French

To begin with, the first word you’ll see in the French dictionary for beautiful is beau. And beau is the masculine singular form of beautiful in French. 

For example, you’ll use it to describe masculine singular words like this:

• Le beau chien = the beautiful dog
• Le beau canapé = the beautiful couch
• Le beau pantalon = the beautiful pants

But, beautiful in French also translates to the word belle. Belle is the feminine singular form of “beautiful.” 

For example, you’ll use it to describe feminine singular words like this:

• La belle danseuse = the beautiful dancer
• La belle journée = the beautiful day
• La belle chemise = the beautiful top

Other Translations of Beau in French

But, even though beautiful translates to beau/belle in French, these two vocabulary words can mean different things depending on the situation.

For example, in English, it’s not as common to call a man beautiful. But, this means that beau can sometimes translate to attractive, handsome or good-looking.

So if you’re using “beau” to describe a masculine person rather than a masculine object, it would translate like this: 

• Le beau boulanger = the handsome baker
• Le beau serveur = the attractive waiter

Depending on the situation beau/belle can also translate as:

• Lovely
• Pleasant
• Fine
• Good

Adjective agreement for beau/belle/bel

Now, we’ve talked a little bit about the feminine and masculine forms of beautiful in French. But what we haven’t had the chance to look at is it in its plural form. 

Since every French noun has a masculine/feminine and singular/plural form, the adjective must match that form with its own. But, let’s look at a few examples.

Plural vs. Singular

The masculine plural form of beautiful in French is beaux. And the feminine plural form of beautiful in French is belles. 

So, here is how to use the plural form of beautiful in French:

• Les beaux jardins (mpl.) = the beautiful gardens
• Les beaux dessins (mpl.) = the beautiful drawings
• Les beaux bateaux (mpl.) = the beautiful boats
• Les belles robes (fpl.) = the beautiful dresses
• Les belles boutiques (fpl.) = the beautiful boutiques
• Les belles chaussures (fpl.) = the beautiful shoes

Difference between beau and bel

We’ve almost made it to the end of all of the forms of beautiful in French. But there is one last form, which is bel. 

In the French language, bel is a masculine singular form of beautiful, just like beau. But, since beau ends in a vowel, you can’t use it before a word that starts with a vowel. 

So, similar to how we say “an apple” instead of “a apple,” you say un bel oiseau instead of un beau oiseau. Here are a few other examples:

• Un bel écureuil = a beautiful squirrel
• Un bel image = a beautiful picture
• Un bel arbre = a beautiful tree

How to Use Beau and Belle in a Sentence

You did it! You’ve now learned all of the forms of beautiful in the language of love. But, there are a few rules about how to use beau/belle in a sentence. 

Most French adjectives go after the noun they’re describing in a sentence. But, beau/belle is one of the rare adjectives that come before the noun it’s describing. 

For example, you’ll say la belle maison, not la maison belle.

Adverbs with Beau/Belle

That being said, if you pair an adverb with beau or belle, the structure slightly changes. Instead of going before the noun like we saw above, the adverb + adjective phrase will go after the noun like this:

• Un chien trop beau = a very beautiful dog
• Une fille terriblement belle = a terribly beautiful girl

The only exception to this is the adverb très. With très and beau, the adverb + adjective phrase stays before the noun. So, here’s an example:

• Un très beau chien = a very beautiful dog
• Une très belle fille = a very beautiful girl

How to tell a woman or man she/he is beautiful in French

Indeed, one common reason English speakers want to learn the word “beautiful” in French is so that they can use it to tell a woman or man she/he is beautiful. 

So if you would also like to compliment a beautiful woman or man in France, here’s how to say it depending on the situation. 

To call a woman beautiful you can say:

• Vous êtes belle = You are beautiful (formal)
• Tu es belle = You are beautiful (informal)

But, to call a man beautiful/handsome you can say:

• Vous êtes beau = You are handsome (formal)
• Tu es beau = You are handsome (informal) 

Common Expressions with Beau and Belle

Since beau and belle are both common French words, there are a few famous proverbs and quotes containing the word beautiful in French. So let’s take a look at a few.

French Expressions with the Word Beau/Belle

• à belles dents = with greed
• beau comme un coeur = very beautiful
• avoir beau dire = may well do [something]
• Avoir le beau rôle = to get to play the hero

French Proverbs with the Word Beau/Belle

Quebecois Proverb

• “Chaque oiseau trouve son nid beau.” 

Every bird finds their beautiful nest. 

Provençal Proverb

• “Beau chemin n’est jamais long.” 

The beautiful path is never long. 

French Proverb

• “Après la pluie, le beau temps.”

After the rain, good weather.

Emmanuel Kant Quote

• “Le sublime touche, le beau charme.”

The sublime affects deeply, the beautiful charms.

Breton Proverb

• “Celui qui aime les chats a une belle femme.”

Whoever loves cats has a beautiful wife.

French Proverb

• “La plus belle épargne est celle du temps.”

The most beautiful savings account is time.

Synonyms for Beautiful in French

Lastly, just like how there are multiple English words that mean beautiful, there are many synonyms for beautiful in French. So here are a few other common ways to say beautiful in French besides beau/belle:

• Joli(e) = pretty
• Magnifique = magnificent 
• Ravissant(e) = ravishing 
• Mignon(ne) = cute
• Merveilleux/euse = marvellous
• Splendide = gorgeous
• En beauté = beautiful 
• Superbe = superb
• Éblouissant(e) = dazzling
• Éclatant = brilliant 
• Angélique = angelic

Slang Words for Beautiful in French

And finally, if you really want to sound like the native speakers it’s time to learn some French slang for beautiful. 

Sexy (adj.)

Just like we use a few French words in the English language, the French use English words as well. The French use the word sexy as more of a slang version of beautiful.

But be careful because just like in English, the word sexy in French does have more of a sexual connotation. 

Canon (adj.)

Canon is commonly used among young people to mean hot or very beautiful. This phrase was coined in the second half of the 20th century and the French originally used it to refer to an artillery cannon. 

And its noise and damage were very powerful so French speakers would use it as an intensifying adjective. But nowadays, the word is used to describe an extremely attractive person. 

Bonne (adj.)

Bonne is a word that won’t always be appreciated by its recipient. It means hot or sexy, but specifically means that someone is sexually desirable. 

Usually, you don’t use this word to someone’s face. But, it’s more of a “locker room-type” word. So I would say beware when using it!

• Bombe (n.)

Similar to canon, bombe is a word to describe a very attractive woman. Bombe comes from the old French bombance, which the French used to describe the vanity and pride of a person in the thirteenth century. 

Later on, the French started using the phrase bombe sexuelle to describe someone with certain charms.  But now, you’ll usually just hear the French say bombe.

What do the French think is beautiful?

But, before you start using all of the French words for beautiful, it’s important to know what the French think is beautiful. We often view French women as these long-legged, smooth-tressed models with a pack of cigarettes in their blazer pockets. 

Next, they’ll eat pain au chocolat for breakfast, enjoy a hunk of brie cheese after both lunch and dinner, and always have room for a chocolate soufflé for dessert. And yet, they still squeeze into the jeans they’ve been wearing since high school. 

But, French beauty is so much more than those stereotypes. In summary, French beauty is very diverse and is more about enjoying a balanced lifestyle, cultivating confidence, and using your uniqueness to your advantage.