écossais
/e.kɔ.sɛ/
écossais is the French word for a person who comes from Scotland.
How does it change in a sentence?
The form écossais is used for both masculine singular and masculine plural nouns/adjectives. The feminine form of the noun/adjective is écossaise.
How do you pronounce it?
The word has three syllables and is pronounced /e.kɔ.sɛ/.
Did you know?
- In French, the names of nationalities used as adjectives are not capitalized, but they are capitalized when used as nouns to describe a person, such as un Écossais.
- While écossais refers to the person, the French word for the Scottish tartan pattern is le tartan, showing a direct loan from English rather than a translation.
- The word 'écossais' comes from the root of the name 'Écosse', which is believed to derive from the Latin 'Scotia'.
Examples in context
- Mon voisin est écossais.My neighbor is Scottish.
- Cet homme est écossais, n'est-ce pas ?This man is Scottish, isn't he?
- Je connais un écossais très sympathique.I know a very friendly Scottish man.
Example conversation
Emma and Lucas are talking about a new colleague at work.
- EmmaEst-ce que le nouveau directeur est écossais ?Is the new director Scottish?
- LucasOui, il est écossais.Yes, he is Scottish.
- EmmaC'est pour cela qu'il a un accent.That is why he has an accent.
- LucasEffectivement, son accent est très marqué.Indeed, his accent is very strong.
Sources
- Pronunciation: Wiktionary entry écossais, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries écossais, CC BY-SA 4.0.
