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👉 See also: Chouette examples »
Level A2 (Upper Beginner)
Published March 2, 2026 — Lesson written by French teacher David Issokson for students who want to learn French online, with native audio by Marie Assel Cambier, a voice artist from France.
The French Word of the Day is génial, a super useful adjective and interjection meaning “great” or “awesome.” Mastering this word will instantly make your French sound more natural.
📘 Génial meaning in French
Génial is both an interjection and an adjective and means “great,” “awesome,” “brilliant,” or “fantastic” in French. It is commonly used in everyday French to express strong enthusiasm or approval about an idea, situation, or experience. The feminine form takes an -e (géniale).
➞ Je viens demain. — Génial ! I’m coming tomorrow. — Awesome!
➞ Ce film est vraiment génial. This movie is really great.
🎧 Génial pronunciation in French
The pronunciation of génial is /ʒe.njal/ (IPA), which sounds roughly like “zhay-nyahl.”
📝 Génial usage examples
J’arrive demain vers la fin de l’après-midi. — Génial !
I’m arriving tomorrow toward the end of the afternoon. — Great!
Le dossier est enfin terminé. — Génial !
The file is finally finished. — Awesome!
On peut se voir ce soir après le travail. — Génial !
We can see each other tonight after work. — Fantastic!
👉 See also: Pouvoir conjugation charts (can, to be able) »
Ce cours est génial, j’apprends beaucoup.
This course is amazing, I’m learning a lot.
Chouette translates literally to “owl” and is an interjection meaning “great”, “neat” and “nice.”
👉 See also: Chouette examples »
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🔗 Related words and expressions
- super — great
- fantastique — fantastic
- formidable — terrific
- incroyable — incredible
- excellent(e) — excellent
- magnifique — wonderful
- top — awesome (informal)
- extra — great (informal)
📚 Related lessons on FrenchLearner!
👉 Chouette (great, neat, nice) »
👉 Formidable (terrific, great) »
👉 French interjections (hub) »
