huile d'olive
/ɥil d‿ɔ.liv/feminine
The English phrase "olive oil" is huile d'olive in French.
huile d'olive refers to the oil pressed from olives.
Meaning: oil pressed from olives (noun)
What does it mean word for word?
The phrase is composed of huile (oil) and d'olive (of olive).
How does it change in a sentence?
When expressing the idea of "some olive oil" in a partitive sense, use de l'huile d'olive because huile is a feminine noun starting with a silent h.
Did you know?
- While huile d'olive is a food staple, the word huile is also used in huile de coude, which literally means 'elbow oil' but actually refers to hard physical effort.
- The 'h' in huile was actually a printer's trick to show that the 'u' should be pronounced as a vowel, rather than a consonant.
- In the south of France, where olives are grown, huile d'olive is often treated as a primary fat source, whereas in the north, beurre (butter) traditionally dominated the kitchen.
Examples in context
- Tu as de l'huile d'olive ?Do you have olive oil?This sentence is useful for asking if someone has some huile d'olive.Tatoeba #10511621 by lbdx, translation #10511610 by ddnktr
- Il boit de l'huile d'olive.He drinks olive oil.This sentence is useful for describing someone drinking huile d'olive.Tatoeba #12495103 by always, translation #8233142 by Amastan
- Thomas a acheté une bouteille d'huile d'olive.Tom bought a bottle of olive oil.This sentence is useful for stating that someone bought a bottle of huile d'olive.Tatoeba #6973854 by Blabla, translation #6975434 by Eccles17
- Excusez-moi, avez-vous de l'huile d'olive?Excuse me, do you have olive oil?
- Est-ce que tu peux passer la bouteille d'huile d'olive?Can you pass the bottle of olive oil?
- 14 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Emma and Gabriel are in the kitchen preparing a salad.
- EmmaEst-ce qu'il reste de l'huile d'olive ?Is there any olive oil left?
- GabrielOui, elle est dans le placard.Yes, it is in the cupboard.
- EmmaMerci, j'en ai besoin pour cette salade.Thanks, I need some for this salad.
- GabrielPrends l'huile d'olive que j'ai achetée hier.Take the olive oil that I bought yesterday.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “olive oil” translations and entries huile d'olive, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries huile, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
