Séoul
/se.ul/feminine, masculine
Séoul is the French word for the English phrase Seoul.
Séoul refers to the capital of South Korea.
Meaning: capital of South Korea (name)
How do you pronounce it?
/se.ul/. The word has 2 syllables.
Did you know?
- Because of the near-identical pronunciation between Séoul and the French word seul, jokes or puns in French often revolve around being 'alone in the capital'.
- The French spelling Séoul was established before the current standard English romanization 'Seoul' became the global norm for the Korean name.
- Unlike some cities that have French translations (like 'London' becoming Londres), the word Séoul remains a direct phonetic borrow from Korean.
Examples in context
- Je vis à Séoul.I live in Seoul.Tatoeba #8853723 by Julien_PDC, translation #8850343 by alpucca
- Séoul est la capitale de la Corée du Sud.Seoul is the capital of South Korea.Tatoeba #3998161 by GB3, translation #3992009 by popball
- Autrefois j'ai vécu à Pékin, mais maintenant j'habite à Séoul.I once lived in Beijing, but now live in Seoul.Tatoeba #4474151 by Petrus, translation #4450311 by Will
- Séoul est une ville captivante.Seoul is a captivating city.
- 1 more sentence on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Gabriel and Léa are discussing their travel plans.
- GabrielTu veux aller où pour tes vacances ?Where do you want to go for your vacation?
- LéaJ'aimerais beaucoup visiter Séoul cette année.I would really like to visit Seoul this year.
- GabrielC'est une excellente idée, Léa !That is an excellent idea, Léa!
- LéaOui, Séoul a l'air d'être une ville magnifique.Yes, Seoul seems to be a magnificent city.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “seoul” translations and entries Séoul, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries Séoul, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
