salé
/sa.le/
The French word for savoury is salé.
In English, 'savoury' is used to describe foods that are not sweet. In French, the word salé is used to distinguish these types of foods from sucré (sweet).
What does it mean word for word?
The word salé literally means 'salted' or 'salty'.
How does it change in a sentence?
The adjective must agree in gender and number with the noun it modifies. Use salée for feminine nouns, salés for masculine plural nouns and salées for feminine plural nouns.
How do you pronounce it?
/sa.le/
When do people say it?
When expressing delight or excitement about delicious food, people often use the exclamation Miam!
Did you know?
- Because salé is derived from the verb saler, it shares an ancient root with the English word 'salary', which was originally money paid to soldiers to purchase salt.
- If a French person describes a person's language as salé, they are implying it is 'salty' or coarse, often meaning it contains profanity.
- When a French person says une facture salée, they are referring to a 'hefty bill' rather than the taste of the invoice.
Examples in context
- Ce rôti de bœuf était vraiment succulent.This roast beef was truly savory/delicious.
- Quel repas savoureux tu as préparé !What a savoury/tasty meal you prepared!
- Je préfère le salé au sucré.I prefer savoury to sweet.
- C'est un petit en-cas salé.It is a small savoury snack.
- Est-ce que ce plat est salé ?Is this dish savoury?
Example conversation
Manon and Nathan are deciding what to eat at a party.
- ManonTu veux un dessert ?Do you want a dessert?
- NathanNon, je préfère le salé.No, I prefer savoury.
- ManonJe peux te donner des chips alors.I can give you some chips then.
- NathanOui, merci Manon !Yes, thank you Manon!
Sources
- Pronunciation: Wiktionary entry salé, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries salé, CC BY-SA 4.0.
