The French word for table is
table
Gender
The gender of table is feminine. E.g. la table.
Plural
The plural of table is tables.
French Definition
table | |
1. n. (Mobilier) Table. | |
2. n. Tableau (représentation de données à deux dimensions). | |
3. v. (Figuré) Déposer ; discuter, traiter. | |
The committee decided to table the motion. | |
Le comité décida de déposer la motion. | |
4. v. (Rare) Mettre sur la table, déposer. |
Translations for table and their definitions
table | ||
1. n. table (item of furniture) | ||
2. n. flat surface atop various objects | ||
3. n. flat part of a cut or carved object | ||
4. n. (music) table of a stringed instrument | ||
5. n. matrix or grid of data arranged in rows and columns | ||
6. n. systematic list of content | ||
7. v. first-person singular present indicative of tabler | ||
8. v. third-person singular present indicative of tabler | ||
9. v. first-person singular present subjunctive of tabler | ||
10. v. third-person singular present subjunctive of tabler | ||
11. v. second-person singular imperative of tabler |
tableau | ||
1. n-m. painting | ||
2. n-m. picture (a captured image) | ||
3. n-m. writing board | ||
4. n-m. table (arrangement of rows and columns) | ||
5. n-m. chart |
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August 20[edit]
Wbat is the french word for tale. — 15:33, 20 August 2019 Tablecloth1389
- See wiktionary:table#English and wiktionary:table#French, where you will see that the French pronunciation is different, even though the word is spelt the same. (I assume you meant table and not tale where the French would be conte or histoire or even nouvelle, depending on context.) Dbfirs 15:47, 20 August 2019 (UTC)Reply[reply]
This is from Main Street. The protagonist Carol, stuck in Gopher Prairie, is fantasizing about visiting the East Coast.
- «She pictured herself looking at Emerson’s manse, bathing in a surf of jade and ivory, wearing a trottoir and a summer fur, meeting an aristocratic Stranger.»
What is meant by «trottoir» here. Thank you in advance! —Sluzzelin talk 15:35, 20 August 2019 (UTC)Reply[reply]
- It must be a misspelling or a typo; a trottoir is a sidewalk in French, and a trattoria is a sandwich shop in Italian, and I can’t think of a similar word that would be used for an article of clothing. Google is turning up nothing useful for me. —Jayron32 15:51, 20 August 2019 (UTC)Reply[reply]
- My OED gives trotteur (and also Anglicized trotter) as a term for «a short, neat walking dress». Perhaps trottoir is an error for that (and maybe on Carol’s part rather than Lewis’s). Deor (talk) 16:29, 20 August 2019 (UTC)Reply[reply]
- Thanks, both of you! Deor, that looks very likely. «Trotteur» hadn’t occurred to me, but I wouldn’t have recognised its dressiness anyway: up until this moment, a «trotteur» signified a baby walker to me! Thanks again. —Sluzzelin talk 17:24, 20 August 2019 (UTC)Reply[reply]
- My OED gives trotteur (and also Anglicized trotter) as a term for «a short, neat walking dress». Perhaps trottoir is an error for that (and maybe on Carol’s part rather than Lewis’s). Deor (talk) 16:29, 20 August 2019 (UTC)Reply[reply]
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- Is that toddler wearing a corset ? Never too young for internal organ damage ? SinisterLefty (talk)
- Not sure, but entirely possible up to the late 19th Century. See this ad for example. («Style 210 for Infants. Style 212, Children 4 to 6. Style 213 or 216, Misses 7 to 12. Style 219, for Ladies») —Sluzzelin talk 21:48, 21 August 2019 (UTC)Reply[reply]
- Is that toddler wearing a corset ? Never too young for internal organ damage ? SinisterLefty (talk)
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- Wow, they must have been out of their bloomin’ minds. At least the youngest didn’t seem to have them as tight as the one in the pic here. SinisterLefty (talk) 00:05, 22 August 2019 (UTC)Reply[reply]
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If you are alphabetizing, say, a film named 12 Years a Slave, would that be alphabetized as the number «12» and placed before the letter «A» alphabetical items? Or after the letter «Z» items? Or would you alphabetize the title as if it were spelled out «Twelve» Years a Slave? Where is the Wikipedia rule or policy about this? Thanks. Joseph A. Spadaro (talk) 17:53, 20 August 2019 (UTC)Reply[reply]
- General article is collation… AnonMoos (talk) 18:25, 20 August 2019 (UTC)Reply[reply]
- Well, that’s one … then there’s alphabetical order and there’s lexicographical order. —76.69.116.4 (talk) 21:24, 20 August 2019 (UTC)Reply[reply]
- Wikipedia rules in Help:Alphabetical order. —Wrongfilter (talk) 18:29, 20 August 2019 (UTC)Reply[reply]
- That’s mainly related to the order in WP categories. If there were an article containing an alphabetical list and I wanted to insert 12 Years a Slave into the list, I’d insert it in the t’s, as if 12 were spelled out. I believe that’s the traditional practice of indexers. Deor (talk) 19:13, 20 August 2019 (UTC)Reply[reply]
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- Thanks. But, is there any Wikipedia rule/policy about that? Thanks. Joseph A. Spadaro (talk) 21:11, 20 August 2019 (UTC)Reply[reply]
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- I don’t see any mention of alphabetization in WP:MOS, and that’s where I’d expect it to be if there is one. —76.69.116.4 (talk) 21:24, 20 August 2019 (UTC)Reply[reply]
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Thanks, all. Joseph A. Spadaro (talk) 16:19, 21 August 2019 (UTC)Reply[reply]
table
actuarial life table,
life table n
also US: cocktail table n
credence table n
farm-to-fork n
farm-to-fork adj
put your cards on the table v expr
life table n
table napkin,
also UK: serviette n
periodic table of elements n
round-table n
round-table adj
also UK: lay the table v expr
davenport table n
plural: tables d’hôte n
foosball,
table soccer (US) n
table top n
table-top n as adj
How do you say plate in French? What about fork and knife? Do you know all the different dish names? What’s “un porte-couteau”?
In France, people love “l’art de la table” and often dress a pretty table. If we don’t always set the table with four glasses and different sets of cutlery, you’ll notice it’s still common in a lot of French homes to set a relatively pretty table for each meal. It’s common to have several sets of plates and tablecloths and set a really pretty table for special occasions.
You’ll find more about French table etiquette in this article.
Let’s learn the names of the different items used on a French table.
40 French Tableware Terms
French Silverware Names
- un couvert – piece of silverware
- un couteau – knife
- un couteau à fromage – cheese knife
- un couteau à poisson – fish knife
- une fourchette – fork
- une fourchette à poisson – fish fork
- une fourchette à dessert – dessert fork
- une (petite / grande) cuillère – (small / large) spoon
- une cuillère à dessert – desert spoon
- une cuillère à soupe – soup spoon
- une cuillère à café – coffee spoon
- une pelle à glace – special spoon to eat ice-cream (it’s round and flat)
- Les couverts de service – serving spoon and fork
- un porte-couteau – knife stand
- l’argenterie – silver silverware
- une pelle à tarte – cake server
Many restaurants won’t have un porte-couteau (a knife rest) because… well, they are going to wash the tablecloth anyway, so who cares if you leave a big spot with your knife? Well, I don’t wash my tablecloth after each meal in my house… So I like to use them
French Plate Names
- la vaisselle – dishes
- une assiette – plate
- une grande assiette – main course plate
- une petite assiette – smaller plate
- une assiette à soupe – soup plate
- une assiette creuse – soup plate
- une assiette à fromage – cheese plate
- une assiette à dessert – dessert plate
Be careful not to mistake the word “une assiette” and “un siège” which means a seat. Because the verb “to sit” is “s’asseoir”, I hear this mistake very often.
Note that a very small plate to put under a cup is called “une soucoupe”.
“La vaisselle” in French refers to both the ensemble of your table dishes, an also the dirty dishes you have to wash… A dishwasher is actually “un lave-vaisselle”.
To describe the shape of dishes and plates in French, we often use the French adjectives :
- creux/ creuse – hollow
- plat / plate – flat
- long/ longue – long
- grand/e – large, big
- petit/e – small
or use the construction “à + dish” like “à soupe”, “à dessert” etc…
French Serving Dish Names
- Un plat – serving dish
- Un plat creu – hollow dish
- Un plat plat – flat dish !!
- Un saladier – salad dish, large bowl
- Une soupière – soup dish
- Une saucière – gravy bowl
- Un bol – bowl
Other French Table Terms
- la table – the table
- une nappe – tablecloth
- un set de table – place mat
- une serviette – napkin
- un porte-serviette – napkin ring
- une carafe à eau – water carafe
- un décanteur – wine decanter
- un dessous de plat – (hot) dish stand
- la salière – salt dispenser
- le poivrier – pepper mill
- une tasse – cup, mug
The story featured in the novel part of my French method often takes place in the kitchen, at the table at home or in a restaurant. You’ll learn the French table vocabulary within the context of a realistic story.
If you enjoy learning French language and culture in context, check out French Today’s downloadable French audiobooks: French Today’s bilingual novels are recorded at different speeds and enunciation, and focus on today’s modern glided French pronunciation.
À Moi Paris Audiobook Method
A new approach to learning both traditional and modern French logically structured for English speakers.
More Details & Audio Samples
The Many Glasses of the Formal French Table
Glasses (un verre) are placed above the plate, left to right from the tallest to the smallest.
I read somewhere you could have up to 7 glasses on a French table! But usually, in a regular French home, you’ll have one or two: one glass for both water and wine or one glass for water, one glass for wine.
10 French Glass Names
- une coupe de Champagne – Champagne glass (large and open)
You never drink anything else than Champagne (or maybe a Champagne cocktail) in a Champagne glass. - une flûte à Champagne – Champagne glass (long and tall as featured on the picture below)
- un verre à vin rouge – red wine glass (a bit taller)
- un verre à vin blanc – white wine glass (a bit smaller)
- un verre à eau – water glass
- un verre a whiskey – smaller, usually kind of square
- un verre a martini – martini glass (triangular)
- un verre à vin doux – sweet wine glass (very small)
- un verre à digestif – after dinner drink (super small)
French Drinking Etiquette
VERY IMPORTANT – you need to wait for everybody to have their glass filled, and often give a chance for someone to make a toast, to start drinking. Even water. Read more about French drinking etiquette.
There’s a lot to be said about French table manners. I encourage you to read my in depth article about the French table etiquette since it is a subject on its own.
Would you like to help me do a better list? Add suggestions for more French table related words (not French food, just plates, dishes and silverware, glasses etc… please) in French and translated into English and I’ll add them to the list!
Born and raised in Paris, I have been teaching today’s French to adults for 23+ years in the US and France. Based on my students’ goals and needs, I’ve created unique downloadable French audiobooks focussing on French like it’s spoken today, for all levels. Most of my audiobooks are recorded at several speeds to help you conquer the modern French language.
Good luck with your studies and remember, repetition is the key!
More Articles from Camille Chevalier-Karfis
By • September 13, 2012 • Updated August 2, 2022
Moving to France and looking to furnish a house or apartment? On this page you’ll find a list of French furniture names.
French furniture vocabulary notes
There are multiple terms for several of words on this list. For example, there are two words for mirror in French: la glace and le miroir. These words can be used interchangeably.
There are also multiple words for chair: le fauteuil (armchair) and la chaise (chair or seat). The word for desk or office chair is le transat.
The general word for furniture is les meubles. This word is easy to confuse with l’immeuble, which means apartment building.
- armchair, easy chair un fauteuil
- bed un lit
- bedside table une table de chevet
- bench un banc
- bookcase une bibliothèque
- cabinet un meuble de rangemen
- carpet une moquette
- chair une chaise
- china cabinet un vaisselier
- coffee table une table basse
- couch, sofa un canapé, un sofa
- cupboard un placard
- curtain un rideau
- desk un bureau
- desk chair transat
- dining-room table un table de salle à manger
- divan un lit-divan
- drawer un tiroir
- dresser une commode
- file cabinet un classeur (à tiroirs)
- fireplace une cheminée
- hutch un coffre
- lounge chair un siège inclinable
- lowboy une commode basse
- mirror un miroir
- nightstand une table de nuit, une table de chevet
- piece of furniture un meuble
- pillow un oreiller
- rocking chair une chaise à bascule
- seat un siège
- shelf une étagère
- sofa-bed canapé-lit
- stool un tabouret
- table une table
- wardrobe une armoire
- writing desk un secrétaire
Related vocabulary lists
- the home vocabulary
- rooms in the house
- kitchen vocabulary
- bathroom vocabulary
- bedroom vocabulary
More resources:
- Furniture vocabulary (FrenchPod101)
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David Issokson is a lifelong language enthusiast. His head is swimming with words and sounds as he speaks over six languages. Of all the languages he speaks, he’s the most passionate about French! David has helped hundreds of students to improve their French in his private online lessons. When procrastinating working on his site, FrenchLearner.com, David enjoys his time skiing and hiking in Teton Valley, Idaho.