In French, one of the most common words you’ll hear is formidable. At first you may think it means “formidable”, as an “formidable task”. However, formidable is a false cognate (or faux ami in French), meaning “terrific” and “great”. This post will explain precisely how to use formidable in conversational French. Keep reading.
formidable
terrific, great
/for·mee·dah·bluh/ – [fɔʀmidabl]
Formidable – Terrific & Great
Example sentences
In French, you can use formidable as a one-word exclamation. You can also say “c’est formidable !” (it’s/that’s wonderful!). Here are some example sentences.
Formidable ! J’y serai demain !
Great! I’ll be there tomorrow!
Hier j’ai vu un film formidable. Je suis certain que vas l’aimer !
I saw a great film yesterday. I’m sure you’ll like it!
J’ai vraiment apprecié la pièce. C’était formidable !
I really liked the play. It was wonderful!
Other translations of formidable include “outstanding”, “astonishing” and of course “formidable”.
Elle a appris le poème par coeur. Elle a une mémoire formidable.
She learned the poem by heart. She has an outstanding memory.
Word origin
According to Projet-voltaire.fr, until the beginning of the 19th century, the only usage of formidable was to describe a person, object or situation which caused fear. In Latin, the adjective formidabilis translates to “causing or inspiring fear”. It’s only in modern French that the meaning of formidable has taken on a postive connotation to mean “great” and “terrific”.
Conclusion
Et voilà ! Now you hopefully have a solid grasp of how to use formidable in French. Now check our post covering the song “Formidable“ by Belgian singer Stormae.
French Word of the Day | Lessons by David Issokson
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