joue
/ʒu/feminine
The French word for cheek is joue.
joue refers to the part of the face. A common way to describe someone blushing or being flushed is to use the phrase avoir les joues rouges, which literally means to have red cheeks.
Meaning: part of face (noun)
How does it change in a sentence?
The plural form of joue is joues.
How do you pronounce it?
/ʒu/
Did you know?
- In French, you can use joue to describe the side of a cheek-shaped piece of furniture or a structural element of a stair.
- The word joue shares a distant ancestor with the English word 'jowl', which refers to a person's heavy flesh under the jaw.
- When describing a 'cheeky' smile in English, a French speaker would use words related to 'mischief' rather than the word joue.
Examples in context
- Il me toucha à la joue.He touched me on the cheek.This sentence is useful for showing how to say someone touched you on the joue.Tatoeba #568975 by sacredceltic, translation #297768 by CM
- Elle m'embrassa la joue.She kissed my cheek.This sentence shows how to say someone kissed your joue.Tatoeba #2180558 by sacredceltic, translation #2179083 by Hybrid
- Le chiot a léché sa joue.The puppy licked her cheek.This sentence demonstrates a puppy licking a joue.Tatoeba #10775650 by lbdx, translation #6971948 by AlanF_US
- Il a une tache sur la joue.He has a spot on his cheek.
- Ses pomettes rosées la rendent encore plus belle.Her rosy cheeks make her even more beautiful.
- Elle a une tache de rousseur sur la joue gauche.She has a freckle on her left cheek.
- Son grand sourire illumine ses belles joues.Her big smile lights up her beautiful cheeks.
- Elle lui a donné une petite tape sur la joue pour le réveiller.She gave him a little tap on the cheek to wake him up.
- 46 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Nathan and Chloé are talking about a baby's cute face.
- NathanRegarde sa petite joue !Look at his little cheek!
- ChloéElle est tellement rose.It is so pink.
- NathanOn a envie de lui faire un bisou sur la joue.I want to give him a kiss on the cheek.
- ChloéMoi aussi, c'est adorable.Me too, it's adorable.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “cheek” translations and entries joue, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries joue, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
