Today’s lesson covers a the French adjective drôle. This word can be somewhat of a double-edged sword because it has two unrelated meanings: “funny” and “weird”. This post will explore both usages of drôle and include example sentences with audio.
drôle
funny / weird
Drôle Meaning & Translation
Drôle = funny
According to Wiktionary.org, the French word drôle originates from the Dutch words drolle/drol, which is related to the leprechaun or elf, a joyful and good-natured being.
In these first three example sentence, drôle means “funny” or “comical”.
Pierre est un homme très drôle. J’adore ses blagues et son sens de l’humour.
Pierre is a funny man. I love his jokes and sense of humor.
Je vais vous raconter une histoire drôle. Je suis certain que tu vas l’aimer !
I’m going to tell you a funny story. I’m sure you’ll like it!
Qu’est-ce que tu es drôle ! J’adore ton imitation de Macron !
You’re so funny! I love your imitation of Macron.
Drôle = weird
In the following example sentences, drôle means weird, awkward, odd and bizarre.
Je n’aime pas ce type. Il est très drôle !
I don’t like this (or that) guy. He’s very strange!
C’est drôle, mais j’ai l’impression de te connaître depuis très longtemps.
It’s strange, but I have the impression that I’ve known you for a long time.
Conclusion
Et voilà ! Now you have a firm grasp of how to use drôle in French. Now check out our post coving the adjective nul/nulle, which translates to “lousy” or “sucks”.
