French Expressions With the Verb Rendre

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The French verb rendre literally means "to return" and is also used in many idiomatic expressions. Learn how to give thanks, glorify, comply with orders, and more with this list of expressions with rendre.

Possible meanings of rendre

  • to give back, return
  • to administer (justice)
  • to hand in (homework)
  • to pay off (e.g., an experiment)
  • to produce, make, yield
  • to repay
  • to render (a thought, an expression)
  • to surrender
  • to vomit

Expressions with rendre

  • rendre + adjective
    to make (happy, scared, mad, etc.)
  • rendre l'âme
    to breathe one's last
  • rendre un culte à
    to worship
  • rendre de la distance (running)
    to have a (distance) handicap
  • rendre gloire à
    to glorify
  • rendre gorge
    to repay unfairly gotten gains
  • rendre grâces à
    to give thanks to
  • rendre hommage à
    to pay homage to
  • rendre honneur à - rendre les derniers honneurs à
    to pay tribute to - to pay the last tributes to
  • rendre du poids (horse-riding)
    to have a (weight) handicap
  • rendre des points
    to give someone a head start
  • rendre raison de quelque chose à
    to give a reason for something
  • rendre service
    to be a great help, to be handy
  • rendre service à quelqu'un
    to do someone a service
  • rendre le soupir
    to breathe one's last
  • rendre visite à quelqu'un
    to visit someone
  • se rendre à
    to go to
  • se rendre à l'appel de quelqu'un
    to respond to someone's appeal
  • se rendre à l'avis de quelqu'un
    to bow to someone's advice
  • se rendre compte de
    to realize
  • se rendre à l'evidence
    to face facts
  • se rendre aux ordres
    to comply with orders
  • se rendre aux prières de quelqu'un  
    to yield to someone's pleas
  • se rendre aux raisons de quelqu'un
    to bow to someone's reasons
  • Rendez-vous compte!
    Just imagine!
  • Tu te rends compte?
    Can you imagine?
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Team, ThoughtCo. "French Expressions With the Verb Rendre." ThoughtCo, Dec. 6, 2021, thoughtco.com/french-expressions-with-rendre-1368712. Team, ThoughtCo. (2021, December 6). French Expressions With the Verb Rendre. Retrieved from https://www.thoughtco.com/french-expressions-with-rendre-1368712 Team, ThoughtCo. "French Expressions With the Verb Rendre." ThoughtCo. https://www.thoughtco.com/french-expressions-with-rendre-1368712 (accessed March 29, 2024).