en difficulté
/ɑ̃ di.fi.kyl.te/
In French, the English phrase struggling is translated as en difficulté.
en difficulté is used to describe someone facing financial, academic or emotional hardships.
What does it mean word for word?
The phrase is composed of the preposition en (in) and the noun difficulté (difficulty).
Which one should you use?
While en difficulté describes a state of being, it is different from the verb lutter, which describes the active process of fighting or struggling against something.
How does it change in a sentence?
The phrase en difficulté is invariable and does not change its form to agree with gender or number.
Did you know?
- While en difficulté describes a state, the French word galérer is a very common slang term for struggling. It originates from the 'galères' (galleys) where convicts were forced to row under brutal conditions.
- In a maritime context, a ship en difficulté is not just having a hard time, but is often perceived as being in imminent danger of sinking or being crippled.
- In French, being en difficulté is often used as a polite euphemism for being bankrupt or insolvent when discussing a person's finances.
Examples in context
- un élève en difficultéa struggling studentThis sentence is useful for describing a student using the form en difficulté.
- Étant donné ma formation académique différente, j'éprouve des difficultés à comprendre certaines subtilités de la langue française.Due to my different academic background, I am struggling to understand certain subtleties of the French language.
- Je rencontre quelques problèmes avec la prononciation des sons nasaux en français.I am encountering some difficulties with the pronunciation of nasal sounds in French.
- J'ai un peu galéré pour comprendre le sens de cet article, mais je suis en train d'y arriver.I struggled a bit to understand the meaning of this article, but I'm starting to grasp it.
- J'ai un peu de mal avec la grammaire française, mais j'essaie de m'améliorer chaque jour.I have a bit of difficulty with French grammar, but I am trying to improve every day.
- Il est en difficulté avec ses finances.He is struggling with his finances.
- Nous sommes en difficulté depuis le début du projet.We have been struggling since the start of the project.
Example conversation
Emma and Nathan are discussing a difficult assignment at work.
- EmmaNathan, est-ce que tu es en difficulté sur ce dossier ?Nathan, are you struggling with this file?
- NathanOui, Emma, c'est vraiment très compliqué.Yes, Emma, it is really very complicated.
- EmmaVeux-tu que je t'aide un peu ?Do you want me to help you a bit?
- NathanC'est très gentil, merci beaucoup.That is very kind, thank you very much.
Sources
- Pronunciation: Wiktionary entry en difficulté, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Example sentences: Wiktionary CC BY-SA 4.0.
