tôt
/to/
The French word for early is tôt.
tôt is used to express the concept of early, typically referring to a general time of day being early.
Meaning: arriving at a time before expected (adj)
Which one should you use?
While tôt refers to the general time of day being early, use en avance when you are specifically referring to being ahead of a scheduled time or an appointment.
Related words
How does it change in a sentence?
tôt is an adverb and does not change its form to agree with a noun or subject.
How do you pronounce it?
/to/
What mistakes should you avoid?
Avoid using tôt to mean 'ahead of schedule'. For example, if you want to say a train arrived early, you should use en avance instead.
Did you know?
- The word tôt shares an ancient history with the English word 'toast'. It originates from the Latin word 'tostus', meaning 'toasted' or 'hotly'.
- The phrase de bonne heure is a common alternative to tôt when referring to the early morning, literally meaning 'of a good hour'.
- French uses the phrase le lève-tôt to describe a 'morning person' or an 'early bird'.
Examples in context
- Tu es là tôt.You're here early.This sentence is useful for seeing how to say someone is here early using tôt.Tatoeba #4579578 by sacredceltic, translation #1895610 by CK
- Il est si tôt.It is so early.This sentence is useful for describing how early it is using tôt.Tatoeba #1252615 by sacredceltic, translation #1252138 by Scott
- Je me lève tôt.I get up early.This sentence is useful for expressing that one gets up early using tôt.Tatoeba #2347563 by MartinShadock, translation #2266968 by _undertoad
- Je me réveille tôtI wake up early
- Il arrive toujours de bonne heureHe always arrives early
- Merci d'être venu en avanceThank you for being early
- Nous commençons toujours nos vacances en famille de bonne heure et de bonne humeurWe always start our family vacations bright and early
- Ils sont allés pêcher aux auroresThey went fishing at the crack of dawn
- Elle aime aller courir de grand matinShe enjoys going for a run early in the morning
- 717 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Hugo and Léa are meeting at a cafe.
- HugoSalut Léa, tu es là très tôt !Hi Léa, you are here very early!
- LéaOui, j'ai fini mon rendez-vous tôt.Yes, I finished my appointment early.
- HugoTu n'es pas pressée, alors.You aren't in a hurry, then.
- LéaNon, je voulais juste te voir.No, I just wanted to see you.
Sources
- Pronunciation: Wiktionary entry tôt, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries tôt, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
