French-English False Cognates - Faux amis
Liste alphabétique - E
Éducation vs Education
Éducation usually refers to education at home: upbringing, manners.
Education is a general term for formal learning = instruction, enseignement.
Éligible vs Eligible
Eligible means eligible only for membership or an elected office.
Eligible is a much more general term: éligible or admissible. To be eligible = avoir droit à, remplir/satisfaire les conditions requises pour.
Émail vs Email
Émail refers to enamel.
Email is often translated as un email, but the accepted French term is un courriel (learn more).
Embarras vs Embarrass
Embarras indicates trouble or confusion as well as embarrassment.
Embarrass is a verb: embarrasser, gêner.
Embrasser vs Embrace
Embrasser means to kiss, or can be used formally to mean to espouse.
Embrace means étreindre or enlacer.
Émergence vs Emergency
Émergence is the equivalent of the English words emergence or source.
Emergency is un cas urgent or un imprévu.
Employer vs Employer
Employer is a verb - to use, employ.
Employer is a noun - un patron, un employeur.
Enchanté vs Enchanted
Enchanté means enchanted or delighted, and is most commonly used upon meeting someone, the way "It's nice to meet you" is used in English.
Enchanted = enchanté, but the English word is much less common than the French.
Enfant vs Infant
Enfant means child.
Infant refers to un nouveau-né or un bébé.
Engagement vs Engagement
Engagement is any agreement, commitment, promise, or obligation.
Engagement usually refers to les fiançailles.
Enthousiaste vs Enthusiast
Enthousiaste can be a noun - enthusiast, or an adjective - enthusiastic.
Enthusiast is only a noun - enthousiaste.
Entrée vs Entrée
Entrée
is another word for hors-d'oeuvre; an appetizer.
Entrée refers to the main course of a meal: le plat principal.
Envie vs Envy
Avoir envie de
means to want or to feel like something: Je n'ai pas envie de travailler - I don't want to work (feel like working). The verb envier, however, does mean to envy.
Envy means to be jealous or desirous of something belonging to another. The French verb is envier: I envy John's courage - J'envie le courage à Jean.
Escroc vs Escrow
Escroc refers to a crook or swindler.
Escrow means un dépôt fiduciaire or conditionnel.
Étiquette vs Etiquette
Étiquette is a semi-false cognate. In addition to etiquette or protocole, it can be a sticker or label.
Etiquette can mean étiquette, convenances, or protocole.
Éventuel vs Eventual
Éventuel
means possible: le résultat éventuel - the possible outcome.
Eventual describes something that will happen at some unspecified point in the future; it can be translated by a relative clause like qui s'ensuit or qui a résulté or by an adverb like finalement.
Éventuellement vs Eventually
Éventuellement
means possibly, if need be, or even: Vous pouvez éventuellement prendre ma voiture - You can even take my car / You can take my car if need be.
Eventually indicates that an action will occur at a later time; it can be translated by finalement, à la longue, or tôt ou tard : I will eventually do it - Je le ferai finalement / tôt ou tard.
Évidence vs Evidence
Évidence refers to obviousness, an obvious fact, or prominence.
Evidence means le témoignage or la preuve.
Évident vs Evident
Évident usually means evident or obvious, but there is a familiar expression that always catches me: ce n'est pas évident - it's not that simple.
Evident means évident or manifeste.
Évincer vs Evince
Évincer means to oust, supplant, or evict.
Evince = manifester or faire preuve de.
Exceptionnel vs Exceptional
Exceptionnel can mean either exceptional or special in the sense of out-of-the-ordinary, unexpected.
Exceptional means exceptionnel.
Expérience vs Experience
Expérience
is a semi-false cognate, because it means both experience and experiment: J'ai fait une expérience - I did an experiment. J'ai eu une expérience intéressante - I had an interesting experience.
Experience can be a noun or verb refering to something that happened. Only the noun translates into expérience : Experience shows that ... - L'expérience démontre que... He experienced some difficulties - Il a rencontré des difficultés.
Expérimenter vs Experiment
Expérimenter is a semi-false cognate. It is equivalent to the English verb, but also has the added sense of to test an apparatus.
Experiment as a verb means to test hypotheses or ways of doing things. As a noun, it is equivalent to the French word expérience (see above).
Exploitation vs Exploitation
Exploitation can mean either usage or exploitation.
Exploitation is translated by exploitation, but it always has a negative connotation in English, unlike the French which can simply refer to usage.
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Disclaimer: The words that I have chosen to discuss are not explained in every possible context. There may be occasions where the French and English mean the same thing. I have chosen word pairs that are usually not related by anything other than spelling. For complete definitions and more extensive examples, please consult a dictionary.
