arche
/aʁʃ/feminine
arche is the French word for Noah's ship (ark).
To say "Noah's ark", French uses the construction l'arche de Noé (the ark of Noah) rather than using a possessive 's.
Meaning: Noah's ship (noun)
How does it change in a sentence?
arche is a feminine noun. Because 'arche' is a feminine noun starting with a vowel, the definite article 'la' elides to 'l’' in the singular.
How do you pronounce it?
/aʁʃ/
Did you know?
- The word arche is a cognate of the English word 'archive', as both stem from the Latin arca meaning a chest or box for storing valuables.
- French uses the word arche to describe the physical structure of certain biological systems, such as the arche of the foot.
- In a religious context, arche is used for the 'Ark of the Covenant' (l'Arche d'Alliance), showing that the word refers to a sacred container as well as a ship.
Examples in context
- Connaissez-vous l'arche de Noé ?Do you know Noah's ark?Tatoeba #7701782 by Maxence, translation #69799 by CM
- Maintenant je comprends pourquoi il y avait 8 personnes et 7 paires d'animaux de chaque espèce dans l'arche de Noé.Now I understand why there were 8 persons and 7 pairs of animals of each species in Noah's Ark.Tatoeba #6008457 by Fabimoto, translation #1386450 by Eldad
- Combien y avait-il d'animaux de chaque espèce dans l'arche de Moïse ?How many animals of each species were there on Moses' ark?Tatoeba #1386504 by alexmarcelo, translation #1386480 by sacredceltic
- Regarde, le bateau ressemble à une arche. Ça me rappelle l'histoire de Noé !Look, the boat looks like an ark. It reminds me of the story of Noah!
- 1 more sentence on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Lucas and Emma are looking at a picture book in a library.
- LucasRegarde cette grande arche.Look at this big ark.
- EmmaElle est pleine d'animaux.It is full of animals.
- LucasC'est l'arche de Noé.It is Noah's ark.
- EmmaElle est magnifique, cette arche.This ark is magnificent.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “ark” translations and entries arche, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries arche, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
