Ways to say it
| French | IPA | Note |
|---|---|---|
| récréation | /ʁe.kʁe.a.sjɔ̃/ | feminine |
| pause | /poz/ | feminine |
| récré | /ʁe.kʁe/ | feminine |
The terms are used to describe a time away from studying during the school day for a meal or recreation. While récréation refers specifically to school recess, pause is a more general term for any break or pause in an activity.
Which one should you use?
The shortened form récré is a common way for children and students to refer to recess in a casual setting.
Is there a formal and an informal way to say it?
pause can be used in formal contexts to refer to recess. In contrast, récré is an informal abbreviation commonly used by native speakers and is the most common way for children and students to refer to recess in a casual setting.
Is it said differently in some regions?
In France, the term pause méridienne refers to lunchtime recess. In French-speaking Canada, the full form récréation is commonly used to convey the meaning of "recess".
How does it change in a sentence?
All forms provided are feminine nouns.
How do you pronounce it?
The pronunciation of récréation is /ʁe.kʁe.a.sjɔ̃/. It has 4 syllables.
Did you know?
- The word pause entered Middle French in the 14th century specifically to describe a musical rest.
- The word récréation shares the same Latin root as the English word 'recreation', but in French it refers almost exclusively to school breaks.
- When using the informal term récré, you are using a 'clipped' word, which is a common linguistic way for French speakers to create casual, everyday vocabulary.
Examples in context
- La pause est finie.Recess ended.This sentence is useful for saying that a pause has ended.Tatoeba #3474196 by Scorpionvenin14, translation #2094440 by MethodGT
- La récréation se termine.Recess is ending.This sentence is useful for saying that a récré is ending.Tatoeba #1485977 by martin9, translation #7815044 by AlanF_US
- Les élèves sont actuellement en récréation.The students are having a recess now.This sentence is useful for describing students who are currently in récréation.Tatoeba #11248376 by lbdx, translation #21327 by CK
- L'enseignant a annoncé que la récréation commencerait dans dix minutes.The teacher announced that recess would start in ten minutes.
- Après deux heures de réunion, ils ont fait une pause pour se détendre.After two hours of meeting, they took a recess to relax.
- On devrait faire une petite pause, tu ne penses pas ?We should take a little break, don't you think?
- Les élèves sont impatients d'arriver à la pause méridienne pour jouer au football.The students are looking forward to the lunchtime recess to play football.
- 5 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Two students are talking in the classroom.
- ManonC'est bientôt l'heure de la récréation !It's almost time for recess!
- GabrielOui, j'ai hâte d'aller jouer.Yes, I can't wait to go play.
- ManonOn se retrouve dans la cour ?Shall we meet in the courtyard?
- GabrielD'accord, on se voit à la récréation.Okay, I'll see you at recess.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “recess” translations and entries récréation, pause, récré, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries pause, récré, récréation, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
