mauvais
/mo.vɛ/
The English word bad is translated into French as mauvais.
mauvais is an adjective used to describe something that is unfavorable or negative in quality.
Meaning: unfavorable, negative (adj)
Which one should you use?
Use mauvais to describe the quality of a noun, but use mal to describe how an action is performed.
Is it said differently in some regions?
In Quebec French, the informal phrase C'est plate à mourir! means 'That's extremely boring!'
Related words
How does it change in a sentence?
The masculine singular is mauvais, which is also the form used for the masculine plural. The feminine singular is mauvaise, and the feminine plural is mauvaises.
How do you pronounce it?
/mo.vɛ/
Did you know?
- The word mauvais comes from the Late Latin malifātius, which combines the words for 'bad' and 'fate'.
- In a culinary context, un mauvais œil describes the 'evil eye', a superstition rather than a physical quality of an eye.
- In French, the phrase mauvaise foi refers to 'bad faith' and describes a specific kind of self-deception or hypocrisy.
Examples in context
- Ça sent mauvais !That smells bad.This sentence shows how to use mauvais to describe a bad smell.Tatoeba #3272452 by Micsmithel, translation #4062886 by CK
- Est-ce si mauvais ?Is that so bad?This sentence shows how to use mauvais to ask about the quality of something.Tatoeba #1809077 by sacredceltic, translation #1808136 by Spamster
- Quel mauvais film !What a bad movie!This sentence shows how to use mauvais to describe a bad film.Tatoeba #7699777 by sacredceltic, translation #2173907 by Hybrid
- La situation est mauvaise.The situation is bad.
- Ces nouvelles sont mauvaises.This news is bad.
- Un résultat négatifA negative result
- Des circonstances défavorablesUnfavorable circumstances
- C'est mauvais, ça!That's bad!
- Ce film est nul.This movie is bad.
- Cette nourriture est vraiment pourrie!This food is really bad/rotten!
- Les conséquences économiques sont très mauvaises pour le pays.The economic consequences are very bad for the country.
- C'était vraiment nul comme soirée!That party was really bad!
- 892 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Hugo and Manon are discussing a recent news report.
- HugoAs-tu vu les nouvelles ? C'est un mauvais signe.Did you see the news? It is a bad sign.
- ManonOui, je pense que c'est vraiment mauvais.Yes, I think it is really bad.
- HugoOn devrait s'attendre au pire.We should expect the worst.
- ManonTu as raison, Hugo.You are right, Hugo.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “bad” translations and entries mauvais, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries mauvais, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
