salaud
/sa.lo/
The French word for scumbag is salaud.
salaud is used to refer to a person who is unpleasant or untrustworthy. It is a strong insult that can be translated as both scumbag and bastard when describing someone's character.
Meaning: despicable person (noun)
How does it change in a sentence?
The masculine singular form is salaud. To refer to a female scumbag, use the feminine form salaude. For multiple people, the plural form is salauds.
How do you pronounce it?
The pronunciation is /sa.lo/. It has 2 syllables.
Did you know?
- While salaud is a strong insult, in very close friendships it is sometimes used ironically to mean a 'rascal' or someone who has played a clever trick.
- The word salaud is often paired with grand to form grand salaud, which does not mean a 'big' person but intensifies the level of the person's despicable nature.
- The word salaud is built from the root word sale, which means 'dirty'.
Examples in context
- C'est un vrai salaud.He's a real scumbag.This sentence is useful for seeing how to use salaud to describe someone's character.Tatoeba #14053656 by Myrano_, translation #9851803 by Ooneykcall
- Ce n'est qu'un salaud.He's just a scumbag.This sentence shows how to use salaud to diminish the person's character.Tatoeba #9769592 by lbdx, translation #9765731 by AlanF_US
- Jean est vraiment une personne détestable.Jean is truly a despicable person.
- Je ne peux pas croire que Marie ait fait ça. Quelle pourriture !I can't believe Marie did that. What a scumbag!
- Quel salaud, il a menti à tout le monde.What a scumbag, he lied to everyone.
Example conversation
Manon and Lucas are discussing a former colleague who cheated them.
- ManonTu sais ce qu'il a fait ?Do you know what he did?
- LucasNon, quel est le problème ?No, what is the problem?
- ManonC'est un salaud, il a volé nos idées.He is a scumbag, he stole our ideas.
- LucasJe le savais bien, ce type est horrible.I knew it, that guy is horrible.
Sources
- Pronunciation: Wiktionary entry salaud, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries salaud, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
