Ways to say it
| French | IPA |
|---|---|
| d’or | |
| doré | /dɔ.ʁe/ |
In French, you use different terms to distinguish between the actual material and the appearance of an object. Use d’or to describe an object's material composition, such as a ring made of gold. Use doré to describe the color or appearance of something, such as golden hair or a gilded frame. The related word or can be used as a symbol for the color gold or to refer to anything or anyone considered to be very valuable.
Which one should you use?
Use d’or when an object is literally made of gold. Use doré to describe something that is golden in color or has a gilded appearance.
Related words
How does it change in a sentence?
The adjective doré must agree in gender and number with the noun it modifies. It becomes dorée for feminine singular nouns, dorés for masculine plural nouns and dorées for feminine plural nouns.
Did you know?
- A cage dorée or 'golden cage' is a common French metaphor for a situation where someone has luxury and wealth but no freedom.
- If you describe a person as having a teint doré, you are not necessarily saying they are wealthy, but rather that they have a healthy, sun-kissed tan.
- While d'or describes what something is made of, you can use it to describe abstract things, such as a parole d'or to describe someone's 'golden' or extremely wise words.
Examples in context
- Il n’y a pas d’or.There's no gold.The sentence is useful for stating the absence of gold using d’or.Tatoeba #2269528 by MartinShadock, translation #2252659 by CK
- Je vois de l’argent, mais je ne vois pas d’or.I see money, but I don't see gold.The sentence is useful for contrasting money with gold using d’or.Tatoeba #2443687 by MartinShadock, translation #6831574 by Eccles17
- En automne les feuilles deviennent rouges et dorées.In the fall, the leaves turn red and gold.The sentence is useful for describing the golden color of leaves using dorée.Tatoeba #590161 by qdii, translation #266356 by buster_blu
- L'or est un métal précieuxGold is a precious metal
- Il a du bléHe has money
- J'ai acheté un bijou en or.I bought a gold jewel.
- Son collier est en or massif.Her necklace is made of solid gold.
- La ruée vers l'or a eu lieu au XIXe siècle.The gold rush happened in the 19th century.
- 2 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Nathan and Emma are looking at jewelry in a shop window.
- NathanRegarde cette bague d’or.Look at this gold ring.
- EmmaElle est vraiment magnifique.It is truly magnificent.
- NathanEst-ce qu'elle est en or pur ?Is it made of pure gold?
- EmmaJe pense que oui.I think so.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “gold” translations and entries doré, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
