hydroponie
/i.dʁɔ.pɔ.ni/feminine
Hydroponics in French is hydroponie.
hydroponie refers to the cultivation of plants in a nutrient solution. You may also encounter the term la culture hors-sol, which means soilless cultivation. These two terms are sometimes used interchangeably.
Meaning: cultivation of plants in a nutrient solution (noun)
Which one should you use?
To describe the specific process of growing plants, you can use the common term culture hors-sol or the more formal la culture hydroponique. If you want to emphasize the cultivation aspect informally, you can use la culture hydro.
How does it change in a sentence?
Because hydroponie starts with a mute 'h', the definite article la elides to l’ before it, forming l'hydroponie.
How do you pronounce it?
/i.dʁɔ.pɔ.ni/
Did you know?
- In common French parlance, hydro is an extremely common shorthand for 'hydroelectricity'. Using la culture hydro in a region like Quebec might briefly confuse a listener into thinking you are discussing power plants rather than plants.
- The French word culture refers both to the act of farming plants and the intellectual development of a society. In the phrase culture hors-sol, the word retains its biological meaning, but the phrasing mirrors a common French idiom for being 'detached from reality'.
- The phrase agriculture verticale is frequently paired with hydroponie in the context of French urban farming movements.
Examples in context
- L'aquaponie est une nouvelle méthode de culture, destinée à nourrir la population de façon durable, associant l'élevage de poissons et l’hydroponie, c'est-à-dire la culture hors-sol de plantes.Aquaponics is a new method of cultivation, destined to feed the population in a sustainable fashion, associated with fish farming and hydroponics, that is to say cultivating plants above ground.This sentence explains how aquaponics combines fish farming and hydroponie for sustainable food production.Tatoeba #4198163 by sacredceltic, translation #11024333 by tjwhale
- Il est un expert en hydroponie.He's an expert in hydroponics.This sentence describes someone who is an expert in hydroponie.Tatoeba #1328880 by Scott, translation #1328656 by Scott
- L'hydroponie présente de nombreux avantages, tels qu'une utilisation efficace de l'eau et des nutriments, une croissance plus rapide des plantes et une production accrue.Hydroponics offers numerous advantages, such as efficient use of water and nutrients, faster plant growth, and increased production.
- La culture hydroponique est intéressante, car elle permet de cultiver des plantes sans sol, en utilisant des solutions nutritives équilibrées.Hydroponic cultivation is interesting as it allows growing plants without soil, using balanced nutrient solutions.
- Je suis passionné(e) par l'hydroponie. J'ai récemment commencé ma propre culture hydro chez moi et je suis impressionné(e) par les résultats obtenus !I'm passionate about hydroponics. I recently started my own hydro garden at home, and I'm impressed by the results!
- L'hydroponie permet de cultiver des légumes en ville.Hydroponics allows for growing vegetables in the city.
Example conversation
Hugo and Chloé are visiting a modern urban farm.
- HugoC'est impressionnant, tout fonctionne avec l'hydroponie ici.It's impressive, everything works with hydroponics here.
- ChloéOui, on n'a pas besoin de terre pour cultiver.Yes, we don't need soil to grow things.
- HugoEst-ce que c'est difficile à installer chez soi ?Is it difficult to set up at home?
- ChloéNon, Hugo, il existe des kits très simples.No, Hugo, there are very simple kits.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “hydroponics” translations and entries hydroponie, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
