tropical
/tʁɔ.pi.kal/
To say tropical in French, use tropical. It describes something from or similar to a hot, humid climate.
Meaning: from or similar to a hot humid climate (adj)
Which one should you use?
exotique can also describe something linked to the tropics, or exotic and foreign more generally.
How does it change in a sentence?
tropical is the masculine singular form. The feminine is tropicale, and the feminine plural tropicales appears in forêts tropicales. The tropics themselves are tropiques.
How do you pronounce it?
The IPA is /tʁɔ.pi.kal/, in three syllables.
Did you know?
- While tropical is a scientific descriptor, the related word exotique is often used as a marketing term in France to describe anything from a pineapple to a vacation spot, regardless of whether it is actually located in the tropics.
- The word tropical shares the same Latin root as the English word 'tropic', which comes from 'tropikos', meaning 'turn'.
- In French literature and travelogues, tropical is often paired with the word luxuriance to describe the density of vegetation. This creates a specific linguistic association between the climate and an overflowing abundance of nature that goes beyond a simple adjective.
Examples in context
- Cette île a un climat tropical.That island has a tropical climate.un climat tropical means a tropical climate.Tatoeba #893851 by sacredceltic, translation #67891 by CK
- Cette île est un paradis tropical.This island is a tropical paradise.un paradis tropical means a tropical paradise.Tatoeba #10616264 by Aiji, translation #7523812 by Hybrid
- Ce champignon vit dans les forêts tropicales.This fungus lives in tropical forests.forêts tropicales shows the feminine plural form.Tatoeba #10745649 by Nyans, translation #8132177 by Amastan
- C'est un pays chaud et humideIt's a hot and humid country.
- 12 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Gabriel and Léa are looking at a travel magazine.
- GabrielRegarde cette magnifique plage tropicale.Look at this beautiful tropical beach.
- LéaElle a l'air tellement chaude et humide.It looks so hot and humid.
- GabrielJ'adore l'ambiance tropicale des vacances.I love the tropical vibe of vacations.
- LéaMoi aussi, on devrait y aller.Me too, we should go there.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “tropical” translations and entries tropical, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries tropical, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
