dominateur
/dɔ.mi.na.tœʁ/
The English phrase "dominator" is translated into French as dominateur.
In formal contexts, you might use Souverain to refer to someone who exerts supreme power and control or Maître to metaphorically describe someone who dominates others. In informal settings, Caïd can be used to describe someone who dominates others, often in a negative or aggressive way.
How does it change in a sentence?
The feminine form of dominateur is dominatrice.
How do you pronounce it?
The word has 4 syllables and is pronounced /dɔ.mi.na.tœʁ/.
Did you know?
- The informal term caïd for a 'dominator' is borrowed from Arabic and originally referred to a military commander or a governor.
- In French, the verb dominer is used not just for people, but to describe a building that 'dominates' or overlooks a city skyline.
- The feminine version dominatrice can sometimes carry a more provocative or psychological connotation in modern French than the masculine dominateur does in English.
Example conversation
Gabriel and Léa are discussing a former colleague.
- GabrielTu te souviens de Marc ?Do you remember Marc?
- LéaOui, il était beaucoup trop dominateur.Yes, he was far too dominating.
- GabrielC'est vrai, il voulait tout contrôler.That's true, he wanted to control everything.
- LéaC'était difficile de travailler avec lui.It was difficult to work with him.
Sources
- Pronunciation: Wiktionary entry dominateur, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
