Ways to say it
| French | IPA |
|---|---|
| délice | /de.lis/ |
| plaisir | /plɛ.ziʁ/ /ple.ziʁ/ |
| joie | /ʒwa/ |
In French, there are different ways to express delight depending on whether you mean the sensation of pleasure or the emotion of joy. To express the idea of 'delighting in' an activity, French speakers typically use the verbal phrase prendre plaisir à followed by an infinitive. Related verbs that mean 'to give pleasure to' include enchanter and ravir.
Which one should you use?
The word plaisir is the general term for pleasure. In contrast, délice is more intense and often carries a more formal or literary tone, frequently used to describe sensory or aesthetic delights. While plaisir and délice refer to the sensation of pleasure or enjoyment, joie refers more specifically to the emotional state of joy.
Related words
How does it change in a sentence?
The noun délice is masculine, so it is used with the article un or le.
How do you pronounce it?
délice is pronounced /de.lis/ and has 2 syllables.
Did you know?
- In French, the word ravir means 'to delight' or 'to delight someone', but it also literally means 'to snatch away' or 'to kidnap'.
- The word plaisir shares a common ancestor with the English word 'please', both tracing back to the Latin 'placēre'.
- While plaisir means 'pleasure', the phrase avec plaisir is the standard way to say 'my pleasure' or 'gladly' when accepting an invitation.
Examples in context
- Les pédants prennent plaisir à être obtus.Pedants delight in being obtuse.This sentence shows how to use plaisir to describe taking delight in an activity.Tatoeba #939082 by U2FS, translation #925713 by Shiawase
- Le plaisir est à l'opposé de la tristesse.Delight is the opposite of sorrow.This sentence uses plaisir to contrast delight with sorrow.Tatoeba #9452396 by Micsmithel, translation #20683 by helloroto
- Son plaisir était tel, qu'elle se mit à danser.Such was her delight that she began to dance.This sentence illustrates using plaisir to describe a person's sense of delight.Tatoeba #1036115 by sacredceltic, translation #316574 by sundown
- C'est un délice de vous rencontrerIt is a delight to meet you
- Le spectacle était d'un ravissement totalThe show was a total delight
- Quel bonheur de te voir !What a delight to see you!
- C'était un vrai plaisir de travailler avec toiIt was a real pleasure to work with you
- C'est un pur déliceIt is a pure delight
- Quel bonheur immense !What immense delight!
- La surprise de revoir mon amie d'enfance était un délice intemporel.The surprise of seeing my childhood friend again was a timeless delight.
- 9 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
A couple is eating a dessert at a restaurant.
- NathanCe chocolat est un vrai délice.This chocolate is a true delight.
- LéaJe suis d'accord, c'est délicieux.I agree, it's delicious.
- NathanQuel délice de manger ici avec toi.What a delight to eat here with you.
- LéaMoi aussi, je passe un super moment.Me too, I'm having a great time.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “delight” translations and entries délice, plaisir, joie, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries délice, joie, plaisir, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
