héros
/e.ʁo/masculine
The English phrase hero translates to French as héros.
The term refers to a person of great bravery.
Meaning: person of great bravery (verb)
Which one should you use?
While the English word 'hero' can be used for any gender, the French word héros is strictly masculine and requires the feminine form héroïne for a female hero.
How does it change in a sentence?
The feminine form of héros is héroïne.
How do you pronounce it?
The pronunciation is /e.ʁo/, consisting of 2 syllables.
Did you know?
- The 'h' in héros is pronounced as a breathy sound specifically to prevent the phrase les héros from sounding like les zéros, which means 'the zeros'.
- In French literature, the term héros is often used to describe the main character of a story, regardless of whether they are actually brave or virtuous.
- Because of the 'h aspiré', you cannot make a liaison between the article and the noun, so you say les héros' rather than 'lay-zay-ro'.
Examples in context
- Tu es mon héros.You are my hero.Tatoeba #1617390 by sacredceltic, translation #1617002 by Spamster
- Je suis un héros.I'm a hero.Tatoeba #428234 by dominiko, translation #25509 by CK
- Tom est un héros.Tom is a hero.Tatoeba #6638183 by GB3, translation #1604619 by Spamster
- Nous rendons hommage aux héros qui ont servi leur pays avec bravoureWe pay tribute to the heroes who served their country with bravery
- Mon fils adore les super-héros dans les bandes dessinéesMy son loves superheroes in comic books
- Ce chanteur est mon idole depuis mon enfanceThis singer has been my idol since childhood
- 74 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Nathan and Chloé are talking about a firefighter who saved a dog.
- NathanCe pompier est un vrai héros.That firefighter is a true hero.
- ChloéOui, il a été très courageux.Yes, he was very brave.
- NathanIl a agi comme un héros.He acted like a hero.
- ChloéTout le monde l'admire, Nathan.Everyone admires him, Nathan.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “hero” translations and entries héros, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries héros, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
