violence policière
feminine
The English phrase police brutality is expressed in French as violence policière. Wiktionary also lists brutalité policière.
Meaning: use of excessive force by a police officer (noun)
Ways to say it
| French | Note |
|---|---|
| violence policière | feminine |
| brutalité policière | feminine, rare |
Both terms refer to the use of excessive force by a police officer.
Which one should you use?
While brutalité policière is a direct translation of the English term, violence policière is the much more common and natural way to express this concept in French media and daily speech.
Is it said differently in some regions?
In some regions, the plural form brutalités policières is preferred.
How does it change in a sentence?
The adjective policière must be in the feminine form to agree with the feminine nouns violence or brutalité.
Did you know?
- The French word brutalité does not always refer to physical force and can be used to describe someone who is simply crude or tactless in their social manners.
- While English treats 'police brutality' as an uncountable concept, French protestors often use the plural violences policières to highlight a systemic pattern of separate incidents.
- In official French administrative and legal reports, the phrase usage disproportionné de la force is used as the technical equivalent of 'police brutality'.
Examples in context
- La brutalité policière est un problème depuis longtemps.Police brutality has been a problem for a long time.This sentence is useful for stating that brutalité policière has been a long-standing issue.Tatoeba #12456573 by lbdx, translation #3106395 by CK
- Les manifestations récentes ont été marquées par des cas de brutalité policière.The recent protests were marked by cases of police brutality.
- La violence policière a été filmée hier.The police brutality was filmed yesterday.
- Ils manifestent contre la violence policière.They are protesting against police brutality.
Example conversation
Gabriel and Manon are discussing the news on their phones.
- GabrielTu as vu les infos sur la violence policière ?Did you see the news about the police brutality?
- ManonOui, c'est vraiment tragique, Gabriel.Yes, it is truly tragic, Gabriel.
- GabrielIl faut que ça s'arrête.It has to stop.
- ManonJe suis tout à fait d'accord avec toi.I completely agree with you.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “police brutality” translations, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
