sonneur
/sɔ.nœʁ/masculine
A bell ringer in French is a sonneur, or more precisely a sonneur de cloches. If unsure, use sonneur. Wiktionary also lists sonneuse de cloches.
Meaning: bell ringer (noun)
Ways to say it
| French | IPA | Note |
|---|---|---|
| sonneur | /sɔ.nœʁ/ | masculine |
| sonneur de cloches | masculine | |
| sonneuse de cloches | feminine |
sonneur can mean a ringer in general, so sonneur de cloches is the phrase that makes it clear you mean someone who rings bells. Le sonneur de cloches is the more formal way to name the role.
What does it mean word for word?
sonneur comes from the verb sonner, meaning to ring or to sound. de cloches means of bells.
Which one should you use?
sonneur de cloches names someone who rings bells. Le carillonneur is a bell ringer who plays a carillon, the musical instrument made of bells.
How does it change in a sentence?
sonneur is masculine. The feminine form is sonneuse, so a woman who rings bells is a sonneuse de cloches.
How do you pronounce it?
sonneur is pronounced /sɔ.nœʁ/, in two syllables.
Did you know?
- In historical French villages, the sonneur was not just a worker but often the official timekeeper for the entire community before clocks were common.
- While a sonneur rings bells for signals, a carillonneur is considered a musician who treats the bells as a keyboard instrument.
- While sonneur de cloches is the standard term, the word sonner can also be used in the context of 'sonner l'alarme', which means to sound an alarm or to raise a red flag.
Examples in context
- Le sonneur est arrivé à l'église.The bell ringer has arrived at the church.
- C'est un vieux sonneur expérimenté.He is an experienced old bell ringer.
- Le sonneur de cloches a commencé son travail.The bell ringer started his work.
Example conversation
Hugo and Emma are visiting an old village chapel.
- HugoRegarde, je crois que c'est le sonneur.Look, I think that is the bell ringer.
- EmmaOui, il monte dans le clocher.Yes, he is going up into the bell tower.
- HugoLe métier de sonneur semble difficile.The job of a bell ringer seems difficult.
- EmmaC'est vrai, mais c'est très impressionnant.That's true, but it is very impressive.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “bell ringer” translations and entries sonneur, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
