je suis mort
To say I died in French, use je suis mort.
je suis mort states that a person has ceased to live. It is also often used figuratively with de for an extreme feeling, as in Je suis mort(e) de rire, I died of laughter or Je suis mort(e) de fatigue, meaning you are exhausted.
Which one should you use?
je suis mort can mean both I died and I am dead, because French forms the past tense of the verb to die with the verb to be. Je suis décédé(e), I am deceased, is a formal alternative. Je suis mort(e) de peur means you were extremely frightened.
How does it change in a sentence?
A female speaker adds an e: je suis morte.
Did you know?
- In French internet slang, the phrase Je suis mort de rire is so common that it is almost always shortened to the acronym MDR.
- The phrase je suis mort is used in French to describe extreme embarrassment, a usage that goes beyond the literal meaning of death or physical exhaustion.
- The word mort in je suis mort is inherited from the Latin mortuus for 'dead' and mors for 'death'.
Examples in context
- Je suis mort.I died.Je suis mort. is the plain sentence for I died.Tatoeba #2551406 by Amastan, translation #4866920 by jarbv
- Je suis mort de faim.I died of hunger.Je suis mort de faim. means I died of hunger.Tatoeba #11915732 by Igider, translation #11962971 by Fenrir
- « Es-tu vivant ? » « Non, je suis mort… »"Are you alive?" "No, I died…"Asked if they are alive, the speaker jokingly answers Non, je suis mort…, meaning no, I died.Tatoeba #14042835 by menaud, translation #14042838 by menaud
- Les blagues de mon ami sont toujours si drôles, je suis mort(e) de rire à chaque fois.My friend's jokes are always so funny, I die laughing every time.
- 1 more sentence on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Two characters in a ghost story are talking.
- GabrielEmma, est-ce que tu m'entends ?Emma, can you hear me?
- EmmaOui, Gabriel, je t'entends.Yes, Gabriel, I hear you.
- GabrielC'est étrange, car je suis mort.It's strange, because I died.
- EmmaTu es un fantôme alors !You are a ghost then!
Sources
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries je, mort, suis, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
