OTAN
/ɔ.tɑ̃/feminine
In French, the English name NATO is translated as OTAN.
OTAN is the acronym used to refer to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization.
Meaning: North Atlantic Treaty Organization (name)
What does it mean word for word?
The acronym OTAN stands for Organisation du Traité de l'Atlantique Nord.
How does it change in a sentence?
OTAN is a feminine noun because the head noun is Organisation. Because OTAN starts with a vowel sound, you use the definite article l' (as in l'OTAN) instead of la.
How do you pronounce it?
The pronunciation is /ɔ.tɑ̃/. It has 2 syllables.
Did you know?
- In French, the phonetic sound of OTAN is nearly identical to the word hautain, which means 'haughty' or 'arrogant'.
- While OTAN is the official term, French speakers may use the English 'NATO' when speaking in high-level international diplomatic circles to ensure clarity with non-Francophones.
- If you are reading a French newspaper, the term 'l'OTAN' might appear in headlines without an article, a stylistic choice often used in journalism to save space, despite the formal requirement for the article 'l'.
Examples in context
- L'OTAN a attaqué la Libye.NATO attacked Libya.This sentence is useful for describing a military action involving OTAN.Tatoeba #12493562 by always, translation #11066806 by Amastan
- L'Ukraine veut adhérer à l'OTAN.Ukraine wants to join NATO.This sentence is useful for discussing a country's desire to join OTAN.Tatoeba #12493560 by always, translation #10821806 by Amastan
- La Lituanie a rejoint l'OTAN en 2004.Lithuania joined NATO in 2004.This sentence is useful for noting when a country joined OTAN.Tatoeba #10934525 by Julien_PDC, translation #10934505 by Amastan
- Les pays membres de l'OTAN se réunissent régulièrement pour discuter des questions de sécurité internationale.NATO member countries regularly meet to discuss international security issues.
- L'Organisation du Traité de l'Atlantique Nord est une alliance intergouvernementale établie pour promouvoir la coopération et la sécurité entre les pays membres.The North Atlantic Treaty Organization is an intergovernmental alliance established to promote cooperation and security among member countries.
- On parle beaucoup de l'OTAN en ce moment.There's a lot of talk about NATO at the moment.
- 6 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Hugo and Manon are discussing international news at a café.
- HugoTu as vu les actualités sur l'OTAN ?Did you see the news about NATO?
- ManonNon, de quoi s'agit-il ?No, what is it about?
- HugoC'est un rapport sur l'OTAN.It is a report on NATO.
- ManonJe vais regarder ça plus tard.I will watch that later.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “nato” translations and entries OTAN, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
