Celsius
masculine
Celsius is the French way to say celsius (adjective).
Celsius is used as an adjective to describe a temperature scale. It is the standard scientific term in French.
Meaning: related to a metric scale of temperature (adj)
Which one should you use?
While Celsius is the standard term, you may also encounter the synonym centigrade. In certain formal scientific contexts, the term Degré centigrade is used as an alternative to degré Celsius.
How does it change in a sentence?
When using Celsius as an adjective modifying the noun degré, it does not take an s in its plural form. For example, you would say 22,68 degrés Celsius.
Did you know?
- When talking about the weather, French speakers use the impersonal phrase Il fait, which literally means 'It makes'. To say it is 20 degrees Celsius, they say Il fait 20 degrés, as if the weather is 'making' the temperature.
- While English speakers use a decimal point, a French speaker writing a temperature in Celsius will use a comma. For example, 22.68 degrees becomes 22,68 degrés Celsius.
- While Celsius is used for temperature, the French word degré also refers to the 'degree' of a burn or a 'degree' in a university system, though the latter is usually called un diplôme.
Examples in context
- L'eau gèle à zéro degré Celsius.Water freezes at zero degrees Celsius.This sentence shows how to use Celsius when stating the freezing point of water.Tatoeba #895015 by sacredceltic, translation #681014 by Source_VOA
- L'eau gèle à zéro degré Celsius, n'est-ce pas ?Water freezes at zero Celsius, right?This sentence uses Celsius in a conversational way to confirm a fact.Tatoeba #8453727 by Aiji, translation #4427801 by AlanF_US
- La température exacte est de 22,68 degrés Celsius.The exact temperature is 22.68 degrees Celsius.This sentence demonstrates how to express an exact temperature using Celsius.Tatoeba #10346588 by Aiji, translation #271593 by CK
- La température sera de 25 degrés Celsius aujourd'hui.The temperature will be 25 degrees Celsius today.
- Veuillez convertir la température de Fahrenheit en degrés centigrades.Please convert the temperature from Fahrenheit to degrees centigrade.
- Il fait 20 degrés aujourd'hui.It's 20 degrees today.
- 12 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Nathan and Manon are discussing the weather forecast.
- NathanIl fera combien de degrés Celsius demain ?How many degrees Celsius will it be tomorrow?
- ManonLa météo prévoit vingt degrés Celsius.The weather forecast predicts twenty degrees Celsius.
- NathanC'est parfait pour une promenade.That is perfect for a walk.
- ManonOui, Nathan, il fera très beau.Yes, Nathan, the weather will be very nice.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “celsius” translations, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
