troll
/tʁɔl/masculine
The French word for 'troll' is troll.
A troll is a person who makes or posts inflammatory or insincere statements in an attempt to lure others into combative argument. To describe the act of trolling, you can use the expression Faire du trolling or the verb Troller les autres to mean 'to troll others'. The expression Faire du trolling is borrowed from English. The verb troller can also be used to mean 'to troll'.
Meaning: person who makes or posts inflammatory or insincere statements in an attempt to lure others into combative argument (noun)
Related words
How does it change in a sentence?
The noun troll is masculine. While you may occasionally see une troll used in very informal digital contexts, the masculine form is the standard. The verb troller is a regular -er verb. For example, it can be conjugated in the conditional mood as trollerait (would troll).
How do you pronounce it?
/tʁɔl/
Did you know?
- In many French digital forums, users might use the term troller to describe someone who is simply 'messing around' or 'joking', even without the malicious intent of the English definition. It can sometimes carry a lighter, more playful connotation than the English 'troll'.
- While troll describes internet behavior, French also uses the word troll to refer to the mythical creature from Scandinavian folklore.
- In some French contexts, a person who trolls may be called a provocateur, a traditional French word that predates the internet and shares a similar intent.
Examples in context
- Daniel est un véritable troll.Daniel is an absolute troll.This sentence shows how to use troll as a noun to describe a person.Tatoeba #11958243 by Amastan, translation #11483614 by Amastan
- « Vous êtes, Monsieur, un impérialiste ! » « Et vous, Monsieur, êtes un troll. »"You, Sir, are an imperialist!" "And you, Sir, are a troll."This example uses troll in a dialogue to label someone.Tatoeba #789441 by U2FS, translation #789419 by FeuDRenais2
- Ce n'est qu'un troll.He's just a troll.This sentence uses troll to identify someone's nature.Tatoeba #10680933 by Adelpa, translation #10680932 by Adelpa
- 2 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Hugo and Manon are discussing a social media comment section.
- HugoRegarde ce troll dans les commentaires.Look at this troll in the comments.
- ManonIl cherche juste à provoquer tout le monde.He is just trying to provoke everyone.
- HugoTu as raison, ne lui réponds pas.You're right, don't answer him.
- ManonJe vais simplement bloquer ce troll.I will simply block this troll.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “troll” translations and entries troll, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
