nigérian
/ni.ʒe.ʁjɑ̃/
The English word "nigerian" is translated into French as nigérian.
nigérian is an adjective meaning of, from or pertaining to Nigeria, the Nigerian people or culture (adj).
Meaning: of, from, or pertaining to Nigeria, the Nigerian people or culture (adj)
Which one should you use?
The adjective is written in lowercase, whereas the noun referring to a person is capitalized. For a male Nigerian, the term is Nigérian and for a female Nigerian, it is Nigériane.
Related words
How does it change in a sentence?
The feminine form of the adjective is nigériane. As a noun, Nigérian refers to a male person and Nigériane refers to a female person.
How do you pronounce it?
The word has three syllables: /ni.ʒe.ʁjɑ̃/.
Did you know?
- In French, the word for a person from Nigeria is Nigérian, but the word for a person from Niger is Nigérien.
- The phonetic sound /jɑ̃/ at the end of nigérian is a nasal vowel that does not exist in English, requiring the speaker to block air from the mouth and let it pass through the nose.
- The word nigérian was specifically adopted into French to mirror the English 'Nigerian' to avoid confusion with nigérien, which refers to people from the neighboring country of Niger.
Examples in context
- C'est une arnaque nigériane classique.It's a classic Nigerian 419 scam.This sentence uses the adjective nigérian to describe a scam.Tatoeba #1802031 by sacredceltic, translation #1801644 by Spamster
- C'est un attrape-nigauds nigérian classique.It's a classic Nigerian booby-trap.This sentence uses the adjective nigérian to describe a booby-trap.Tatoeba #1803269 by sacredceltic, translation #2318146 by Gulliver
- L'arnaque nigériane a pour ancêtres les « Lettres de Jérusalem ».The ancestor of the Nigerian scam is the “Letters from Jerusalem”.This sentence uses the adjective nigérian to discuss the ancestry of a scam.Tatoeba #1802042 by sacredceltic, translation #11557231 by weirdie
- Le président nigérian est en visite officielle en France.The Nigerian president is on an official visit to France.
- Elle travaille pour l'ambassade nigériane à Paris.She works for the Nigerian embassy in Paris.
- Cet avocat est originaire du Nigeria.This lawyer is from Nigeria.
- La délégation africaine comprend plusieurs membres originaires du Nigeria.The African delegation includes several members from Nigeria.
- Je suis allé à cette fête avec un gars nigérian super sympa.I went to that party with a really nice Nigerian guy.
Example conversation
Léa and Gabriel are at a restaurant discussing a dish.
- LéaTu connais la cuisine nigériane ?Do you know Nigerian cuisine?
- GabrielNon, mais je veux goûter un plat nigérian.No, but I want to try a Nigerian dish.
- LéaGabriel, ce restaurant est excellent.Gabriel, this restaurant is excellent.
- GabrielSuper, commandons alors !Great, let's order then!
Sources
- Wiktionary, “nigerian” translations and entries nigérian, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries nigérian, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
