beau-grand-père
The French phrase for step grandfather is beau-grand-père.
beau-grand-père is used to refer to the husband of one's grandmother who is not one's biological grandfather.
What does it mean word for word?
The term is composed of beau (handsome/step), grand (big) and père (father).
Did you know?
- In French, the beau- prefix is applied to all in-laws and step-relations, meaning your 'father-in-law' is also a beau-père. This creates a linguistic link between a step-parent and a parent-in-law that does not exist in English.
- If you were to describe a grandfather who is particularly striking or good-looking, you would use beau grand-père without the hyphens, whereas the familial title beau-grand-père requires them.
- While a student might learn beau-grand-père in a textbook, it is quite rare to hear it in a real French household. Most people will simply use the standard term grand-père to avoid the formal or clinical sound of the 'step' prefix.
Examples in context
- J'ai rendu visite à mon grand-père par alliance hier.I visited my step grandfather yesterday.
- Mon beau-grand-père est très gentil.My step-grandfather is very kind.
- Je vais chez mon beau-grand-père ce week-end.I am going to my step-grandfather's house this weekend.
- Est-ce que ton beau-grand-père habite ici ?Does your step-grandfather live here?
Example conversation
Manon and Hugo are talking about family members at a cafe.
- ManonTu connais mon beau-grand-père, Hugo ?Do you know my step-grandfather, Hugo?
- HugoNon, je ne l'ai jamais rencontré.No, I have never met him.
- ManonIl est vraiment sympathique.He is really nice.
- HugoC'est super de l'avoir dans la famille.It's great to have him in the family.
