stressé
The French word for stressed is stressé.
stressé is an adjective used to describe how a person feels. While it describes the feeling of being stressed-out, you can also use other informal expressions to convey specific nuances of stress. For example, Je suis à cran is used to say you are on edge, Je suis sur les nerfs implies you are on edge or nervous due to irritability and Je suis à bout is used when you are at your breaking point from overwhelming stress.
Meaning: stressed-out (adj)
Which one should you use?
It is important to distinguish between the person and the cause. Use stressé to describe how a person feels, but use stressant to describe a situation or thing that is stressful.
How does it change in a sentence?
As an adjective, the form changes to match the gender and number of the person being described: add an e to the end for a female subject (stressée), add an s for a group of men or a mixed group (stressés) and add es for a group of women (stressées).
Did you know?
- The word stressé is a relatively recent addition to the French language, having been borrowed directly from English as the concept of psychological stress became globally recognized.
- The expression sur les nerfs literally translates to 'on the nerves'. While English speakers say they are 'getting on someone's nerves', French uses the position of being 'on' them to describe one's own internal state.
- The expression être à cran used to describe being on edge comes from the mechanical tension of a spring or a machine's mechanism.
Examples in context
- Je me sens stressé.I'm feeling stressed.This sentence is useful for expressing your own feelings of being stressé.Tatoeba #4682098 by sacredceltic, translation #51880 by CK
- Tu as l'air stressé.You seem stressed.This sentence is useful for describing how someone else looks when they are stressé.Tatoeba #7553576 by Micsmithel, translation #1895690 by CK
- Tom avait l'air stressé.Tom looked stressed.This sentence is useful for describing how someone looked in the past when they were stressé.Tatoeba #9948298 by Rovo, translation #8375025 by CK
- Je suis stressé(e) à cause du travailI am stressed because of work
- Je suis tendu(e) avant mon examenI am tense before my exam
- Je suis sous pression au travailI am under pressure at work
- Je suis à cran avec tous ces problèmesI am on edge with all these problems
- Je suis sur les nerfs à cause du traficI am on edge because of the traffic
- 19 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Lucas and Chloé are talking at a cafe.
- LucasTu as l'air très stressé aujourd'hui.You look very stressed today.
- ChloéOui, je suis un peu stressée par le travail.Yes, I am a bit stressed by work.
- LucasTu devrais prendre des vacances.You should take a vacation.
- ChloéC'est une bonne idée, Lucas.That is a good idea, Lucas.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “stressed” translations and entries stressé, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
