sœur
/sœʁ/feminine
The English word sister is translated into French as sœur.
sœur is a feminine noun used to describe a woman or girl who has the same parents as another person. To specify an older sister, you can use the phrase sœur aînée.
Meaning: woman or girl having the same parents (noun)
Which one should you use?
While sœur is the standard term, you may encounter more specialized forms like sœurette for a little sister or frangine for a more colloquial way to refer to a sister.
How does it change in a sentence?
As sœur is a feminine noun, you must use the feminine possessive adjective ma (my) instead of the masculine mon. The plural form of the word is sœurs.
How do you pronounce it?
/sœʁ/
Did you know?
- The term sœur de lait refers to a 'milk sister', describing two girls who were nursed by the same woman but are not biologically related.
- If you are talking about a 'sister-in-law', the word changes entirely to belle-sœur, which literally translates to 'beautiful sister'.
- The phrase frère et sœur is used to describe siblings. Unlike English, which has the gender-neutral word 'siblings', French typically lists both genders to express the same idea.
Examples in context
- Et ta sœur ?And your sister?This sentence shows how to ask about someone's sister using sœur.Tatoeba #529634 by sacredceltic, translation #7357039 by Eccles17
- Tom a une sœur.Tom has a sister.This sentence demonstrates how to state that someone has a sister using sœur.Tatoeba #5822122 by Yemana, translation #4493747 by CK
- J'y vis ma sœur.I saw my sister there.This sentence illustrates a way to describe seeing a sister using sœur.Tatoeba #1719038 by sacredceltic, translation #322293 by CK
- Ma sœur aînée est très intelligenteMy elder sister is very intelligent
- Ma chère sœur, je te souhaite un joyeux anniversaireMy dear sister, I wish you a happy birthday
- J'ai passé la journée avec ma frangineI spent the day with my sis
- Viens, ma sœurette, jouons ensembleCome, little sis, let's play together
- 881 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Léa and Lucas are talking about their families.
- LéaEst-ce que tu as une sœur ?Do you have a sister?
- LucasOui, j'ai une petite sœur.Yes, I have a little sister.
- LéaElle s'appelle comment ?What is her name?
- LucasMa sœur s'appelle Chloé.My sister's name is Chloé.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “sister” translations and entries sœur, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
