betterave
/bɛ.tʁav/feminine
The French word for beet is betterave. Wiktionary also lists bette.
Meaning: a root (noun)
Ways to say it
| French | IPA | Note |
|---|---|---|
| betterave | /bɛ.tʁav/ /be.tʁav/ |
feminine |
| bette | /bɛt/ | feminine |
The term is used to refer to the root vegetable. You may also encounter the idiom rouge comme une betterave, which means to be 'red as a beet', used when someone blushes or turns red.
Which one should you use?
Use betterave to refer to the root vegetable, whereas bette refers to the leafy vegetable (Swiss chard).
How does it change in a sentence?
Both betterave and bette are feminine nouns.
How do you pronounce it?
/bɛ.tʁav/
Did you know?
- The word betterave is a compound of bette and rave, the latter being an old French word for a turnip.
- Because beets are used for sugar production in France, the word betterave is deeply tied to the history of the French sugar industry.
- The word bette comes from a learned borrowing of the Latin bēta rather than evolving naturally from spoken Vulgar Latin.
Examples in context
- Ce n'est pas du sang. C'est de la betterave.It's not blood. It's beet.This sentence clarifies that a red liquid is beet rather than blood.Tatoeba #780217 by felix63, translation #780216 by FeuDRenais2
- On dit que le jus de betterave peut faire baisser la tension artérielle.They say that beet juice can lower blood pressure.This sentence discusses the health benefits of beet juice.Tatoeba #430719 by qdii, translation #430720 by FeuDRenais
- Je devins rouge comme une betterave.I turned red as a beet.This sentence illustrates the idiom for blushing using betterave.Tatoeba #12772464 by Adelpa, translation #7051005 by Hybrid
- Je vous recommande la betterave rôtie servie avec une vinaigrette légère.I recommend the roasted beet served with a light dressing.
- La betterave est un légume polyvalent qui apporte un goût délicieux et une touche de couleur à de nombreux plats.The beet is a versatile vegetable that adds a delicious taste and a touch of color to many dishes.
- 3 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Manon and Hugo are cooking a vegetable soup together.
- ManonEst-ce qu'il reste de la betterave ?Is there any beet left?
- HugoOui, il y en a une dans le frigo.Yes, there is one in the fridge.
- ManonParfait, je vais la couper.Perfect, I am going to cut it.
- HugoD'accord, je prépare les autres légumes.Okay, I'll prepare the other vegetables.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “beet” translations and entries betterave, bette, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries bette, betterave, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
