gargouille
/ɡaʁ.ɡuj/feminine
The French word for gargoyle is gargouille.
A gargouille is a decorative figure on a building. Specifically, it refers to a spout designed to convey water away from a building.
Meaning: decorative figure on a building (noun)
What does it mean word for word?
The word comes from the Old French verb gargouiller, meaning to gurgle or gargle, which refers to the sound of water flowing through the spout.
Which one should you use?
In French architectural terminology, a gargouille is a spout used for water drainage. In contrast, a chimère refers to a purely decorative grotesque figure that does not serve a water-drainage function.
How does it change in a sentence?
The plural form is created by adding an 's' to the end: gargouilles.
How do you pronounce it?
The word has 2 syllables and is pronounced /ɡaʁ.ɡuj/.
Did you know?
- In French, the word gargouille can be used colloquially to describe a person who eats or drinks noisily.
- The famous monsters perched on the towers of Notre-Dame de Paris are not gargouilles but are actually chimères.
- The term gargouille was originally an engineering solution to prevent rainwater from eroding the mortar of cathedral walls.
Examples in context
- La gargouille de la cathédrale est une splendeur architecturale.The gargoyle of the cathedral is an architectural marvel.
- Nous avons étudié les gargouilles dans notre cours d'histoire de l'art.We studied gargoyles in our art history class.
- Regarde cette gargouille sur le toit.Look at that gargoyle on the roof.
- La gargouille est très ancienne.The gargoyle is very old.
- Il y a une petite gargouille en pierre.There is a small stone gargoyle.
Example conversation
Léa and Lucas are visiting a cathedral.
- LéaPeux-tu voir la gargouille là-haut ?Can you see the gargoyle up there?
- LucasOui, elle est impressionnante.Yes, it is impressive.
- LéaLucas, regarde comme elle est bizarre !Lucas, look how weird it is!
- LucasC'est typique de ce style.It is typical of this style.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “gargoyle” translations and entries gargouille, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
