brûlé
/bʁy.le/
The English word 'burnt' is translated into French as brûlé.
The adjective brûlé is used to describe something that is damaged or injured by fire or heat. When used as a noun in the specific phrase sentir le brûlé, it refers to the smell of something being burnt.
Meaning: damaged or injured by fire or heat (adj)
Which one should you use?
While brûlé is the standard term, Carbonisé(e) is used to express a more severe degree of burning or charring and Crâmé(e) is a way to say something is burnt or charred.
How does it change in a sentence?
The adjective changes to agree with the noun it describes: brûlée is the feminine form, brûlés is the masculine plural and brûlées is the feminine plural.
How do you pronounce it?
/bʁy.le/
Did you know?
- When a car runs a red light, a French speaker says brûler un feu rouge, essentially 'burning' the red light.
- In French slang, être brûlé can mean that a spy or an undercover agent has been compromised and is no longer useful to their agency.
- The term brûlé is used in the expression brûler la politesse à quelqu'un, which means to cut someone off or rudely precede them.
Examples in context
- Je me suis brûlé.I've burnt myself.The first sentence is useful for saying you have burnt yourself using brûlé.Tatoeba #2231489 by Amastan, translation #1739682 by sundown
- Ça sent le brûlé.It smells burnt.The second sentence is useful for describing the smell of something burnt using brûlé.Tatoeba #5752773 by Aiji, translation #3825990 by CK
- J'ai brûlé la tartine.I burnt the sandwich.The third sentence is useful for describing how food was burnt using brûlé.Tatoeba #9165806 by Julien_PDC, translation #10855076 by Taikian
- La nourriture est brûléeThe food is burnt
- Le bois est carboniséThe wood is burnt
- Le pain est trop grilléThe bread is too burnt
- J'ai complètement cramé le rôtiI completely burnt the roast
- Le papier a été réduit en cendresThe paper was reduced to ashes
- 22 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Hugo and Léa are looking at a piece of toast in the kitchen.
- HugoRegarde, le pain est complètement brûlé.Look, the bread is completely burnt.
- LéaOh non, c'est vraiment trop brûlé.Oh no, it is really too burnt.
- HugoJe dois jeter ce morceau brûlé.I must throw away this burnt piece.
- LéaTu as fait attention au grille-pain, Hugo ?Did you pay attention to the toaster, Hugo?
Sources
- Pronunciation: Wiktionary entry brûlé, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
