lourd
/luʁ/
The French word for heavy is lourd. Wiktionary also lists pesant.
Meaning: having great weight (adj)
Ways to say it
| French | IPA |
|---|---|
| lourd | /luʁ/ |
| pesant | /pə.zɑ̃/ |
Lourd is used to describe things that have great physical weight or mass. In a colloquial sense, however, it can also describe a person who is being annoying, socially awkward or a joke that is considered 'heavy-handed' and not funny.
Which one should you use?
Use lourd when referring specifically to physical weight or mass.
Is it said differently in some regions?
In France, the term bourrin(e) is used to describe someone or something that is heavy or clumsy.
How does it change in a sentence?
The adjective lourd must agree in gender and number with the noun it modifies. It becomes lourde for feminine nouns, lourds for masculine plural nouns and lourdes for feminine plural nouns.
How do you pronounce it?
/luʁ/
Did you know?
- The word lourd comes from a Latin root that originally meant 'sallow' or pale in color.
- While lourd describes weight, the term bourrin describes a 'heavy' or clumsy person by comparing them to a draft horse.
- The term lourd can be used to describe a 'heavy' atmosphere, such as a feeling of tension in a room, moving beyond literal mass.
Examples in context
- Que tu es lourd !How heavy you are!This sentence is useful for expressing how heavy a person is using lourd.Tatoeba #2163518 by sacredceltic, translation #669926 by Zifre
- Ce lit pèse lourd.This bed is heavy.This sentence shows how to describe the weight of a bed using lourd.Tatoeba #584623 by qdii, translation #463254 by lukaszpp
- J'ai la tête lourde.My head feels heavy.This sentence illustrates how to describe a head feeling heavy using lourd.Tatoeba #129588 by gillux, translation #280124 by sundown
- Le fardeau de la responsabilité est pesant.The burden of responsibility is heavy.
- Ce piano est trop lourd pour moi.This piano is too heavy for me.
- Les nouvelles tragiques étaient accablantes.The tragic news was overwhelming.
- Le poids de l'échec était écrasant.The weight of failure was crushing.
- 152 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Nathan and Emma are moving boxes in a new apartment.
- NathanCe carton est très lourd.This box is very heavy.
- EmmaEst-ce que tu veux de l'aide, Nathan ?Do you want some help, Nathan?
- NathanOui, s'il te plaît, c'est trop lourd pour moi.Yes, please, it is too heavy for me.
- EmmaD'accord, je vais t'aider à le porter.Okay, I will help you carry it.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “heavy” translations and entries lourd, pesant, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries lourd, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
