plutôt
/ply.to/
The English phrase 'rather' is translated into French as plutôt.
plutôt is the most common way to translate 'rather' in French. To express the specific meaning of 'rather than', you should use the construction plutôt que followed by a noun or an infinitive.
Meaning: more precisely (adv)
Which one should you use?
Do not confuse plutôt (rather/instead) with plus tôt, which means 'earlier' in terms of time.
How does it change in a sentence?
When you use plutôt to mean 'instead' or 'on the contrary', it is often placed after the verb or at the end of a clause to correct a previous statement.
How do you pronounce it?
/ply.to/
Did you know?
- The word plutôt is a linguistic cousin of the English word 'rather'. Both words evolved from phrases meaning 'more soon' in their respective ancestral languages.
- In French, plutôt is often used as a 'hedge' to soften a critique. Saying something is plutôt moyen sounds more polite than saying it is 'average' or 'bad'.
- Because plutôt and plus tôt sound identical in speech, French listeners rely entirely on the surrounding context to know if someone means 'instead' or 'earlier'.
Examples in context
- Il est plutôt bon.He's rather good.This example shows how to describe someone as being rather good using plutôt.Tatoeba #1679374 by sacredceltic, translation #1676637 by Spamster
- Il est plutôt beau.He's rather handsome.This example shows how to describe someone as being rather handsome using plutôt.Tatoeba #1989861 by sacredceltic, translation #3006854 by Hybrid
- Elle est plutôt conne.She's rather clueless.This example shows a negative description using plutôt.Tatoeba #916202 by sacredceltic, translation #505921 by wma
- Je suis plutôt d'accord avec toi.I rather agree with you.
- C'est assez difficile pour moi mais je peux le faire.It's rather difficult for me, but I can do it.
- Il est assez aimable, mais il peut parfois être désagréable.He's rather friendly, but he can sometimes be unpleasant.
- C'est plutôt genre cool comme idée.That's quite a cool idea.
- Je suis plutôt satisfait de ces résultats.I'm rather satisfied with these results.
- Elle est plutôt genre fan de musique classique.She's rather into classical music.
- 218 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Lucas and Emma are discussing a plan for the evening.
- LucasOn va au cinéma, non ?We are going to the cinema, right?
- EmmaPlutôt au restaurant, s'il te plaît.To a restaurant rather, please.
- LucasAh, d'accord, c'est une bonne idée.Ah, okay, that is a good idea.
- EmmaTu as très faim, Lucas ?Are you very hungry, Lucas?
Sources
- Pronunciation: Wiktionary entry plutôt, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries plutôt, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
