arrête de pleurer
In French, stop crying is said as arrête de pleurer.
This phrase is used as a command to tell someone to no longer shed tears.
Which one should you use?
While arrête de pleurer specifically refers to the act of shedding tears, the term arrête de chialer is a more colloquial and often harsher way to express the idea of stopping whining or crying.
Is there a formal and an informal way to say it?
The related form arrête de chialer is considered slang and is more informal or potentially derogatory.
How does it change in a sentence?
The default form arrête de pleurer uses the 'tu' imperative, which is appropriate for one person you know well, such as a friend or a child. If you are speaking to more than one person, or if you are using the formal 'vous' to show respect, you must use arrêtez de pleurer.
Did you know?
- The verb pleurer actually traces its roots back to the Latin word plōrāre, which meant 'to cry out' or 'to shout' rather than just shedding tears. It is more about making a loud noise than being quiet.
- The word arrête is a linguistic cousin to the English word 'arrest'. Whether you are stopping a crying child or stopping a criminal, the underlying concept of halting an action remains the same.
- French has a specific expression pleurer toutes les larmes de son corps to describe crying one's eyes out, literally 'crying all the tears of one's body'.
Examples in context
- Arrête de pleurer !Stop crying.This sentence demonstrates the basic command arrête de pleurer.Tatoeba #3669944 by sacredceltic, translation #2111502 by CK
- Maintenant arrête de pleurer.Now stop crying.This sentence shows how to use arrête de pleurer when adding the word 'now'.Tatoeba #710398 by sysko, translation #41072 by CK
- Arrête de pleurer sans raison !Stop crying for no reason.This sentence shows how to use arrête de pleurer to tell someone to stop crying without a reason.Tatoeba #1977606 by sacredceltic, translation #1977596 by Spamster
- Arrêtez de pleurer, s'il vous plaît.Please stop crying.
- Calmez-vous. Ne pleurez plus, s'il vous plaît.Calm down. Please don't cry anymore.
- Arrête de pleurer maintenant.Stop crying now.
- Ne pleure plus, d'accord ?Don't cry anymore, okay?
- Cesse de chouiner.Stop whining.
- Veuillez cesser de pleurer, tout va s'arranger.Please stop crying, everything will be fine.
- Arrête de pleurer maintenant, on va le retrouver, ne t'en fais pas.Stop crying now, we will find it, don't worry.
- 4 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Emma is comforting Nathan after he hurt his finger.
- EmmaArrête de pleurer, Nathan, ça va aller.Stop crying, Nathan, it will be okay.
- NathanMais j'ai très mal !But it hurts a lot!
- EmmaRegarde, je vais mettre un pansement.Look, I am going to put on a bandage.
- NathanMerci, Emma.Thank you, Emma.
Sources
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries de, pleurer, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
