genou
/ʒə.nu/masculine
The English word "knee" is genou in French.
The word genou refers to the joint in the middle of the leg and the area around it.
Meaning: joint in the middle of the leg and area around it (noun)
Related words
How does it change in a sentence?
The plural of genou is genoux. When you want to express that you are in pain in the knee, you use the preposition à combined with the definite article, resulting in the phrase au genou for a single knee or aux genoux for multiple knees. To describe the physical position of being on one's knees, use the phrase à genoux.
How do you pronounce it?
/ʒə.nu/
Did you know?
- The French expression mettre à genoux can mean literally to kneel or figuratively to defeat someone completely in a competition or conflict.
- The Latin root geniculum used to form genou was actually a diminutive, meaning 'little knee'.
- In traditional French social etiquette, the act of faire une génuflexion is a specific, stylized bending of the genou used as a sign of respect in religious contexts.
Examples in context
- J'ai mal au genou.I have a sore knee.This sentence is useful for saying you have a sore genou.Tatoeba #8342415 by Aiji, translation #5858172 by CK
- Il se cogna le genou.He banged his knee.This sentence is useful for describing someone who banged their genou.Tatoeba #2196391 by sacredceltic, translation #2195238 by Hybrid
- Tom s'est blessé au genou.Tom hurt his knee.This sentence is useful for saying someone hurt their genou.Tatoeba #2807261 by Rockaround, translation #1960925 by CK
- Le médecin a examiné son genou.The doctor examined his knee.
- 44 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Manon and Nathan are at a sports clinic.
- ManonOù as-tu mal ?Where does it hurt?
- NathanJ'ai une douleur au genou.I have a pain in the knee.
- ManonC'est ton genou gauche ?Is it your left knee?
- NathanOui, c'est le genou gauche.Yes, it is the left knee.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “knee” translations and entries genou, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries genou, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
