peindre
/pɛ̃dʁ/
The English phrase 'to paint' is translated into French as peindre.
peindre is the standard and most commonly used word for 'to paint' in French. If you wish to emphasize the specific act of applying paint, you can use the phrase apposer de la peinture. The noun form for 'the painting' or 'the paint' is la peinture.
How does it change in a sentence?
The past participle of peindre is peint. For the first or second person singular in the imperfect tense, the form is peignais, which translates to 'was painting' or 'used to paint'.
How do you pronounce it?
/pɛ̃dʁ/
Did you know?
- The French use peindre in the idiomatic expression peindre dans le vent, which suggests doing something useless or futile.
- In French art history, the term peintre-graveur describes a specific professional who both paints and engraves, a distinction that was highly codified in the French Academy.
- In French, the verb peindre is used not only for art but also to describe the act of 'painting' a picture with words, such as in the expression peindre un portrait.
Examples in context
- Je dois le peindre.I have to paint it.This sentence shows how to use peindre to express an obligation.Tatoeba #570145 by sacredceltic, translation #441953 by CK
- Je n'aime pas peindre.I don't like to paint.This sentence shows how to use peindre with a verb of preference.Tatoeba #1579530 by Rovo, translation #1579438 by fanty
- Tom m'apprend à peindre.Tom is teaching me to paint.This sentence shows how to use peindre after a verb of teaching.Tatoeba #5155926 by Ceriz, translation #5155548 by CarpeLanam
- Il peint des paysages magnifiques.He paints beautiful landscapes.
- Elle a apposé de la peinture sur la toile.She applied paint to the canvas.
- On a patouillé avec les couleurs toute la journée.We had fun daubing colors all day.
- J'adore faire de la peinture, c'est si relaxant.I love doing painting. It's so relaxing.
- 40 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Léa and Lucas are in their art studio.
- LéaTu veux peindre avec moi ?Do you want to paint with me?
- LucasOui, j'adore peindre de nouveaux paysages.Yes, I love to paint new landscapes.
- LéaLucas, tu peux me prêter ton pinceau ?Lucas, can you lend me your brush?
- LucasBien sûr, tiens.Of course, here.
Sources
- Pronunciation: Wiktionary entry peindre, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
