How to Say "Sixties" in French

années soixante

feminine, plural

The English phrase "sixties" is translated into French as années soixante. Wiktionary also lists années 60.

Meaning: decade of the 1960s (noun)

Ways to say it

“sixties” in French
French	Note
années soixante	feminine, plural
années 60	feminine, plural

This phrase refers to the decade of the 1960s.

You can write out the decade using the word années soixante or use digits with années 60.

In the phrase années soixante, the word soixante is invariable, meaning it does not take an "s" even though the phrase is plural.

Unlike the English 'sixties', which can refer to a person's age, années soixante exclusively refers to the calendar decade and cannot be used to describe someone in their sixties.
If you were to say les soixantes without the word 'years', a French speaker might think you are referring to several groups of sixty rather than a period of time.
In many French-speaking regions, such as parts of Belgium or Switzerland, you might hear the number 70 or 80 expressed differently, but for the 1960s, the term soixante remains the universal standard across the Francophonie.

On disait ainsi dans les années soixante.
People said so in the sixties.
This sentence is useful for describing how people spoke during the années soixante.
Tatoeba #1080518 by sacredceltic, translation #5922005 by mailohilohi
Les parents de Tom ont émigré vers l'Australie dans les années soixante.
Tom's parents emigrated to Australia in the sixties.
This sentence is useful for mentioning an event that occurred in the années soixante.
Tatoeba #11953323 by zogwarg, translation #8467360 by Ergulis
Les sixties étaient une période de changement social et culturel.
The sixties were a time of social and cultural change.
On écoute souvent de la musique des années 60.
We often listen to music from the sixties.
Elle adorait la mode des années soixante.
She loved the fashion of the sixties.

Léa and Lucas are looking at old photos.

Léa

Regarde cette photo des années soixante.
Look at this photo from the sixties.
Lucas

C'est ton grand-père sur l'image ?
Is that your grandfather in the picture?
Léa

Oui, il était très jeune à l'époque.
Yes, he was very young at the time.
Lucas

Le style est vraiment différent aujourd'hui.
The style is really different today.

Sources

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