culotte
/ky.lɔt/feminine
The English phrase "panties" is translated into French as culotte.
Culotte refers to underpants worn by women or girls. In formal discussions, you might use the terms sous-vêtements féminins to mean women's undergarments or sous-vêtement de femme to express the concept of a woman's undergarment.
Meaning: underpants for women or girls (noun)
Which one should you use?
In modern everyday French, culotte is primarily used for women's underwear. However, it is worth noting that the word can also refer to "breeches" or "knickers" in historical or masculine contexts.
How does it change in a sentence?
Culotte is a feminine singular noun. Even when you are referring to a single pair of panties, you use this singular form. You can also use the plural form culottes, but the singular culotte is very common for referring to the item of clothing in a general sense.
How do you pronounce it?
/ky.lɔt/
What mistakes should you avoid?
Avoid using pantalon to refer to underwear. While it translates to "pants" in English, it refers to outer trousers and is not the correct term for panties.
Did you know?
- The phrase sans-culottes meaning 'without breeches' was used during the French Revolution to describe the working class who wore trousers instead of the culottes worn by the aristocracy.
- The word culotte is a diminutive of the much more vulgar word cul, which refers to one's buttocks. While culotte is a perfectly polite term for underwear, its linguistic roots are tied directly to the anatomical term for the rear end.
- While culotte is the standard term for panties, the word slip is also used in French to describe a specific style of briefs for both men and women.
Examples in context
- Sa culotte est rose.Her panties are pink.This sentence shows how to describe the color of a culotte.Tatoeba #10265956 by lbdx, translation #10004287 by Idopauline
- Les hommes ne portent pas de culottes.Men don't wear panties.This sentence demonstrates a general statement about what men do not wear regarding culotte.Tatoeba #12478194 by always, translation #9361173 by Amastan
- Enlève ta culotte.Take your panties off.This sentence is an example of a command involving culotte.Tatoeba #8427060 by Aiji, translation #12169813 by megamanenm
- Je vais acheter de nouvelles culottes demain.I'm going to buy new panties tomorrow.
- Elle m'a montré ses nouveaux slips .She showed me her new panties.
- J'ai décidé de porter un string aujourd'hui.I decided to wear a thong today.
- Tu me prêtes une culotte ?Can you lend me a pair of panties?
- 1 more sentence on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Emma is folding laundry in the living room.
- NathanTu as fini de plier le linge ?Are you finished folding the laundry?
- EmmaPresque, je cherche une culotte blanche.Almost, I am looking for a white pair of panties.
- NathanElle est dans le panier.It is in the basket.
- EmmaAh oui, je la vois !Ah yes, I see it!
Sources
- Wiktionary, “panties” translations and entries culotte, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries culotte, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
