tricher
/tʁi.ʃe/
To cheat in French is to say tricher.
The verb tricher is used when someone violates rules to gain an advantage. If you want to describe the act of deceiving or misleading someone, use the verb tromper. While tromper can sometimes convey the notion of cheating, its primary meaning is to deceive. In informal contexts, the verb piquer can also be used to mean to cheat, though its primary meaning is to steal.
Meaning: violate rules to gain advantage (verb)
Which one should you use?
The noun tricheur refers to a male cheater and tricheuse refers to a female cheater. In computer gaming, the English loanword cheat is used to refer to an unfair advantage. For card games, the noun menteur is used.
Related words
How do you pronounce it?
The word has two syllables: /tʁi.ʃe/.
What mistakes should you avoid?
Do not use tricher to mean cheating on a romantic partner (infidelity). While English speakers often make this mistake, in French, you must use tromper to describe infidelity.
Did you know?
- The Latin ancestor of tricher, trīcārī, originally described the act of 'dodging' or 'looking for detours'.
- The informal verb piquer, which usually means 'to steal', can be used in certain contexts to mean cheating.
Examples in context
- Yanni a aidé Skura à tricher.Yanni helped Skura cheat.This sentence shows how to use tricher in the context of helping someone.Tatoeba #12141355 by always, translation #10030999 by Amastan
- C'est mal de tricher aux jeux de cartes.It is wrong to cheat at cards.This sentence demonstrates using tricher regarding card games.Tatoeba #12946 by U2FS, translation #36920 by CK
- Vous ne devez sous aucun prétexte tricher à l'examen.You should on no account cheat in the exam.This sentence shows the use of tricher regarding an exam.Tatoeba #458779 by sacredceltic, translation #238524 by sundown
- Il a triché aux examensHe cheated on the exams.
- Il a trompé sa femmeHe cheated on his wife.
- 1 more sentence on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Léa and Hugo are playing a board game.
- LéaHugo, je crois que tu essaies de tricher !Hugo, I think you're trying to cheat!
- HugoMoi ? Je ne vais jamais tricher.Me? I would never cheat.
- LéaTu as déplacé ton pion quand je regardais pas.You moved your piece when I wasn't looking.
- HugoC'est vrai, désolé, je ne vais plus tricher.That's true, sorry, I won't cheat anymore.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “cheat” translations and entries tricher, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries tricher, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
