ma fleur
In French, "my flower" is said as ma fleur.
ma fleur is a term of endearment used to refer to someone the speaker loves. While it can be used this way, it is much less common in modern French than other terms of endearment such as mon chou or ma puce.
What does it mean word for word?
The phrase is composed of the feminine possessive adjective ma (my) and the feminine noun fleur (flower).
How does it change in a sentence?
Because fleur is a feminine noun, you must use the feminine possessive ma rather than the masculine mon.
What mistakes should you avoid?
Do not use mon fleur. Because fleur is a feminine noun, you must use the feminine possessive ma.
Did you know?
- The word fleur shares a linguistic ancestor with the English word 'floor' because both once referred to the top surface or layer of something.
- French allows for gender-bending endearments, where masculine terms like mon chaton meaning 'my kitten' are frequently used to address women.
- The term fleur was used to create the English loanword 'fleur-de-lis', the stylized lily that served as the royal symbol for the French monarchy.
Examples in context
- Vois-tu ma fleur ?Do you see my flower?This sentence is useful for seeing how to use ma fleur in a question.Tatoeba #1914494 by Rovo, translation #12890630 by rul
- Coucou ma p'tite fleur ! Comment ça va aujourd'hui ?Hey my little flower! How are you today?
- 5 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Hugo is greeting Emma at home.
- HugoBonjour, ma fleur !Hello, my flower!
- EmmaBonjour Hugo, comment vas-tu ?Hello Hugo, how are you?
- HugoJe vais très bien maintenant.I am doing very well now.
- EmmaMoi aussi, je suis heureuse.Me too, I am happy.
Sources
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries fleur, ma, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
