IA
/i a/feminine
The English phrase 'ai' is translated into French as IA.
Meaning: artificial intelligence (noun)
What does it mean word for word?
IA is an acronym for intelligence artificielle. Note that the word order is the reverse of the English term 'artificial intelligence'.
How does it change in a sentence?
IA is a feminine noun. When using the indefinite article for 'an AI', use une IA. Because IA begins with a vowel sound, the definite article 'la' elides to become l'IA.
How do you pronounce it?
/i a/
What mistakes should you avoid?
Avoid using the English acronym 'AI' when speaking French. Instead, use the French version IA.
Did you know?
- While English speakers use the acronym 'AI', a French speaker using 'AI' might be misunderstood as saying 'has' if they are speaking quickly, as ai is the first-person singular conjugation of the verb avoir.
- French tech circles occasionally use the English term 'Machine Learning', but the official French translation is apprentissage automatique.
- In formal French academic writing, authors may avoid the acronym IA entirely and write out intelligence artificielle in full to maintain a prestige style.
Examples in context
- Cela provient de l'IA.This is AI.This sentence is useful for identifying the source of something using IA.Tatoeba #14054367 by Rovo, translation #14051292 by rul
- Un agent IA est devenu incontrôlable lors d'un test.An AI agent went rogue during a test.This sentence describes an occurrence involving an agent using IA.Tatoeba #14023220 by Myrano_, translation #14023219 by Myrano_
- La viande est plus néfaste pour l'environnement que l'IA.Meat is worse for the environment than AI.This sentence provides a comparison using IA.Tatoeba #14004518 by Rovo, translation #13940475 by rul
- L'intelligence artificielle est en constante évolution aujourd'hui.Artificial Intelligence is constantly evolving today.
- 28 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Emma and Hugo are discussing a new app at work.
- EmmaTu as testé cette application basée sur l'IA ?Have you tested this app based on AI?
- HugoOui, l'IA répond très rapidement aux questions.Yes, the AI responds to questions very quickly.
- EmmaC'est impressionnant, mais est-ce fiable ?It's impressive, but is it reliable?
- HugoPas toujours, il faut vérifier les résultats.Not always, you have to check the results.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “ai” translations and entries IA, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
