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Faim – Hungry, hunger

Faim – Hungry, hunger

In today’s lesson we’ll look at the feminine noun faim, which means “hunger”. When combined with the verb avoir (to have), it means “to be hungry”. This word made it onto my word-of-the day list as I’ve heard students make the mistake of pronouncing the final M countless times. The M is silent. Don’t pronounce it! End the word on the nasal IM (ɛ̃) sound.

faim[fɛ̃]

hungry, hunger

FrenchLearner Word of the Day lesson explaining how to use faim (hunger, hungry).

Word origin

The modern French noun faim comes from fames in Latin.

Example sentences

Avoir faim = to be hungry

In French, avoir faim literally means “to have hungry”. Hence, j’ai faim (literally I have hunger) means “I’m hungry”. Saying “je suis faim” is be wrong.

Oh là là, j’ai faim ! Qu’est-ce que j’ai envie de manger ?

Oh my! I’m hungry! What do I want to eat?

The expression avoir une faim de loup (literally to have the hunger of a wolf) means “to be famished” or “to be starving”. The verb bouffer is slang for manger (to eat).

J’ai une faim de loup ! Je vais tout bouffer !

I’m famished! I’m going to eat everything!

This final sentence uses faim in the sense of hunger or “world hunger”.

La faim est le problème pricipal dans les pays en voie de développement.

Hunger is the main problem in the developing world.

Word of the Day lessons

Faim: hunger, hungry

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David Issokson
David Issokson is a lifelong language learner and speaks over seven 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 lessons. When not teaching or writing his French Word of the Day lessons, David enjoys his time skiing, hiking and mountain biking in Victor, Idaho.

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David Issokson

David Issokson is a lifelong language learner and speaks over seven 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 lessons. When not teaching or writing his French Word of the Day lessons, David enjoys his time skiing, hiking and mountain biking in Victor, Idaho.

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