femme d'affaires
The English phrase "business woman" is translated into French as femme d'affaires.
femme d'affaires is the standard term used to describe a woman who is involved in commerce or professional business. You can use it to specify sectors, such as femme d'affaires en finance for "businesswoman in finance" or femme d'affaires dans la technologie for "businesswoman in technology".
What does it mean word for word?
The phrase is composed of femme (woman), d' (of) and affaires (business/affairs).
Which one should you use?
To refer to a man in the same profession, replace femme with homme to say homme d'affaires.
How does it change in a sentence?
To make the phrase plural, only the word femme changes to femmes, while affaires remains plural, resulting in femmes d'affaires.
Did you know?
- The word femme in femme d'affaires descends from a Proto-Indo-European root meaning 'the one nursing' or 'breastfeeding'.
- While femme d'affaires is the standard term, French often uses the gender-neutral chef d'entreprise to describe a business leader regardless of gender.
- The French word affaires can mean 'business' or 'legal cases', meaning a femme d'affaires could theoretically be a woman managing legal matters.
Examples in context
- C'est une femme d'affaires très dynamique.She is a very dynamic business woman.
- Elle veut devenir une femme d'affaires accomplie.She wants to become a successful business woman.
- Cette femme d'affaires voyage souvent à l'étranger.This business woman travels abroad often.
Example conversation
Lucas and Emma are discussing Emma's new career goals at a cafe.
- LucasTu travailles beaucoup en ce moment, Emma.You are working a lot lately, Emma.
- EmmaOui, je veux être une femme d'affaires reconnue.Yes, I want to be a recognized business woman.
- LucasTu as tout le talent pour réussir.You have all the talent to succeed.
- EmmaMerci, c'est très gentil de ta part.Thank you, that is very kind of you.
Sources
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries femme, CC BY-SA 4.0.
