siège
/sjɛʒ/
The French word for seat is siège.
siège refers to a place in which to sit or a specific piece of seating furniture. In a business context, it is used in the phrase siège social to mean the headquarters or main office of a company. The word is also a homograph that can mean a military siege.
Meaning: place in which to sit (noun)
Which one should you use?
While siège refers to the general concept of a seat or a piece of seating furniture, the word chaise is the specific term used for a standard chair.
How do you pronounce it?
/sjɛʒ/
Did you know?
- In French anatomy, le siège can be used as a formal or medical term to refer to the buttocks.
- A baby born feet first is described in French as being in siège, which translates to 'seat' in English.
- The English word 'sediment' shares a distant relative with siège, as both can be traced back to the Latin root 'sedere', meaning 'to sit'.
Examples in context
- Où est mon siège ?Where is my seat?This sentence is useful for asking about the location of your siège.Tatoeba #797763 by RaspaKrusto, translation #251304 by CK
- Libère mon siège !Get out of my seat.This sentence is useful for telling someone to vacate your siège.Tatoeba #4550792 by sacredceltic, translation #2886493 by CK
- Ce siège est pris.This seat is taken.This sentence is useful for stating that a siège is currently occupied.Tatoeba #8362048 by Aiji, translation #2280437 by CK
- Je vous propose de vous asseoir sur le siège libre à côté de moi.I suggest you sit on the vacant seat next to me.
- L'avion a quitté la piste et les passagers sont retournés à leur siège .The plane left the runway and passengers returned to their seats.
- Prends la place à côté de moi, c'est plus confortable.Take the seat next to me, it's more comfortable.
- J'adore m'installer dans le fauteuil du salon pour lire un bon livre.I love sitting in the armchair in the living room to read a good book.
- 89 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Lucas and Léa are boarding a train.
- LucasJe ne trouve pas mon siège.I cannot find my seat.
- LéaRegarde ton billet, Lucas.Look at your ticket, Lucas.
- LucasAh, mon siège est près de la fenêtre.Ah, my seat is near the window.
- LéaC'est une bonne place !That is a good spot!
Sources
- Pronunciation: Wiktionary entry siège, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries siège, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
