pinceau
/pɛ̃.so/
The English phrase paint brush is translated into French as pinceau.
pinceau refers to a paint brush. You can specify the type of brush by adding adjectives: Un pinceau fin is a fine paint brush, Un pinceau large is a wide paint brush and Un pinceau plat is a flat paint brush. Additionally, the idiomatic expression Donner un coup de pinceau is used to mean touching up or improving something.
How does it change in a sentence?
The plural form of pinceau is pinceaux.
How do you pronounce it?
The pronunciation of pinceau is /pɛ̃.so/.
Did you know?
- The word pinceau shares an unexpected ancestor with the English word 'pen', both tracing back to the Latin 'penicillus' which referred to a small brush or quill.
- In some French culinary contexts, the term pinceau is used to refer to the pastry brush used for glazing dough.
- In French, if you want to describe a very small, delicate brush, you might use the word pincelet instead of pinceau.
Examples in context
- Je vais utiliser un pinceau pour peindre cette toile.I am going to use a paint brush to paint this canvas.
- Je vais acheter un pinceau demain.I'm going to buy a paint brush tomorrow.
- Les pinceaux sont indispensables pour un artiste.Paint brushes are essential tools for an artist.
- un pinceauA paint brush
- J'ai besoin d'un nouveau pinceau.I need a new paint brush.
- Le pinceau est très doux.The paint brush is very soft.
- Nettoie bien ton pinceau après.Clean your paint brush well afterwards.
Example conversation
Hugo and Léa are painting a wall together.
- HugoLéa, peux-tu me passer le pinceau ?Léa, can you pass me the paint brush?
- LéaOui, tiens le pinceau, Hugo.Yes, here is the paint brush, Hugo.
- HugoMerci, il est très propre.Thank you, it is very clean.
- LéaJe l'ai lavé ce matin.I washed it this morning.
Sources
- Pronunciation: Wiktionary entry pinceau, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries pinceau, CC BY-SA 4.0.
