1
: of, relating to, or characteristic of France, its people, or their language
2
: of or relating to the overseas descendants of the French people
Frenchness
noun
1
plural in construction
: the French people
2
: a Romance language that developed out of the Vulgar Latin spoken in northern and central Transalpine Gaul and that became the literary and official language of France
3
: strong language
pardon my French
frenched; frenching; frenches
often capitalized
1
: to trim the meat from the end of the bone of (something, such as a chop)
2
: to cut (green beans) in thin lengthwise strips before cooking
Examples of French in a Sentence
Noun
the customs of the French
Recent Examples on the Web
Jacqueline Charles, Miami Herald, 4 July 2024
France requires you to have one French grandparent and parent who will also apply for citizenship.
—Kathleen Wong, USA TODAY, 4 July 2024
The France Télévisions thriller came fresh off the back of the smash success of French movie Anatomy of a Fall.
—Max Goldbart, Deadline, 4 July 2024
The sequel brings back Steve Carell as Gru, a recovering supervillain turned secret agent, and pits him against Will Ferrell as a French baddie named Maxime Le Mal.
—Brent Lang, Variety, 4 July 2024
See all Example Sentences for French 
Adjective
María Isabel Salvador, the head of the United Nations Integrated Office in Port-au-Prince, known by its French acronym, BINUH, told the council the arrival of the specialized officers after months of delays is an important step and renews hope for the people of Haiti.
—Jacqueline Charles, Miami Herald, 4 July 2024
France requires you to have one French grandparent and parent who will also apply for citizenship.
—Kathleen Wong, USA TODAY, 4 July 2024
The France Télévisions thriller came fresh off the back of the smash success of French movie Anatomy of a Fall.
—Max Goldbart, Deadline, 4 July 2024
The sequel brings back Steve Carell as Gru, a recovering supervillain turned secret agent, and pits him against Will Ferrell as a French baddie named Maxime Le Mal.
—Brent Lang, Variety, 4 July 2024
See all Example Sentences for French
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'French.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near French
Cite this Entry
“French.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/French. Accessed 7 Jul. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
French
1 of 2 adjective
: of or relating to France, its people, or their language
French
2 of 2 noun1
: the Romance language of the French
2
French plural
: the people of France
Medical Definition
French
noun
plural French
: a unit of measure equal to one-third millimeter used in measuring the outside diameter of a tubular instrument (as a catheter or sound) inserted into a bodily cavity
the catheter shaft size is three French—Medical Industry Today
—abbreviation F
Medical Industry TodayBiographical Definition
Love words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share