taon
/tɑ̃/masculine
The French word for horsefly is taon.
taon is a masculine noun used to refer to any fly belonging to the Tabanidae family.
Meaning: fly of the family Tabanidae (noun)
How does it change in a sentence?
taon is a masculine noun.
How do you pronounce it?
/tɑ̃/
Did you know?
- In French folklore, the taon is sometimes associated with the 'gadfly' role of Socrates, using the term to describe a provocateur who stings people into thinking.
- Despite being a single word, the French taon can be used in certain regional expressions to describe a person who is particularly annoying or bothersome, much like the English term 'gadfly'.
- The French word taon shares a common ancestor with the Romanian word tăun, following a linguistic path from Latin through various regional dialects.
Examples in context
- Tue ce taon !Kill this horsefly!This sentence illustrates an imperative command using taon.Tatoeba #10322856 by Julien_PDC, translation #10616748 by traeton
- Je me suis fait piquer par un taon.I got bitten by a horsefly.This sentence demonstrates how to say you were bitten by a taon.Tatoeba #10683194 by AutoBot, translation #10683195 by AutoBot
- Les taons sont très agaçants pendant l'été.Horseflies are quite annoying during the summer.
- Je me suis fait piquer par un taon aujourd'hui.I got bitten by a horsefly today.
- Un gros taon vole près de la rivière.A large horsefly is flying near the river.
- 1 more sentence on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Two people are hiking in a forest in summer.
- ManonFais attention, il y a un taon sur ton bras !Watch out, there is a horsefly on your arm!
- GabrielOh non, il est énorme ce taon !Oh no, this horsefly is huge!
- ManonEst-ce qu'il t'a mordu ?Did it bite you?
- GabrielNon, heureusement, il est parti.No, luckily, it left.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “horsefly” translations and entries taon, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries taon, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
