très bon
The French phrase for "very tasty" is très bon.
This phrase is used to describe food or drink that has a very pleasant flavor. While bon literally means "good", when it is applied to food or drink, it serves as the standard way to express that something is "tasty" or "delicious".
How does it change in a sentence?
The phrase must agree in gender with the noun it describes: use très bon for masculine nouns and très bonne for feminine nouns.
What mistakes should you avoid?
English speakers often mistakenly say très délicieux to mean "very delicious". Because délicieux already implies a high degree of tastiness, adding the intensifier très is redundant and sounds unnatural to native speakers.
Did you know?
- In French, describing a person as très bon or très bonne can carry a heavy sexual connotation, implying they are 'very good' in a physical sense. To avoid this unintended compliment, stick to describing the food directly rather than using it as a general adjective for people.
- The word très is a linguistic relative of the English prefix 'trans-', as both evolved from the Latin word trāns meaning 'through' or 'across'.
- The word bon is used in the common French expression c'est bon, which can mean 'it is tasty' or 'that is enough' depending on the context.
Examples in context
- Aah, ça semble très bon.Aha! That looks very tasty.This sentence is useful for noting that something looks very tasty using très bon.Tatoeba #890201 by Scott, translation #5369747 by Objectivesea
- Les chocolats de cette pâtisserie sont exquis.The chocolates from this pastry shop are exquisite.
- Les frites sont délicieuses à souhait.The fries are incredibly tasty.
- Le steak est succulent, j'en redemande.The steak is succulent, I want more.
- Ce gâteau est très bon.This cake is very tasty.
- Le chocolat chaud est très bon.The hot chocolate is very tasty.
Example conversation
Hugo and Léa are eating at a small cafe.
- HugoTu aimes ton dessert ?Do you like your dessert?
- LéaOui, c'est très bon !Yes, it is very tasty!
- HugoJe vais goûter le tien aussi.I am going to taste yours too.
- LéaIl est vraiment délicieux.It is really delicious.
Sources
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries bon, très, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
