merveilleux
/mɛʁ.vɛ.jø/
The French word for wonderful is merveilleux.
merveilleux is an adjective used to describe something as excellent or extremely impressive.
Meaning: excellent, extremely impressive (adj)
What does it mean word for word?
The word is derived from the noun merveille, which means 'marvel' or 'wonder'.
How does it change in a sentence?
The masculine singular is merveilleux, and the masculine plural remains merveilleux. For feminine nouns, use the singular form merveilleuse and the plural form merveilleuses.
How do you pronounce it?
/mɛʁ.vɛ.jø/. It has 3 syllables.
Did you know?
- In French literature, the term merveilleux is a technical genre term used to describe the 'marvelous' or supernatural elements in fairy tales.
- While merveilleux is highly positive, calling a person merveilleux can sometimes sound overly poetic or theatrical in casual conversation, unlike the more common 'super' or 'génial'.
- The root of the word is tied to the Latin 'mirabilia', which refers to things that provoke awe or astonishment.
Examples in context
- Ça a été merveilleux.It has been wonderful.This sentence shows how to use merveilleux to describe a past experience.Tatoeba #4894857 by sacredceltic, translation #1272887 by CM
- Quel temps merveilleux !What wonderful weather!This sentence uses merveilleux to describe weather.Tatoeba #1502138 by sacredceltic, translation #1499304 by CM
- Tu es un merveilleux ami.You're a wonderful friend.This sentence uses merveilleux to describe a friend.Tatoeba #1916395 by sacredceltic, translation #1916072 by Spamster
- J'ai assisté à un concert hier soir, et c'était vraiment magnifique!I attended a concert last night, and it was truly wonderful!
- La conférence donnée par le professeur était vraiment remarquable.The conference given by the professor was truly remarkable.
- Le concert était génial, j'ai passé une soirée incroyable!The concert was amazing, I had an incredible evening!
- Les vacances avec mes amis étaient super, nous avons passé un bon moment!The vacation with my friends was great, we had a good time!
- La vue depuis cette colline est vraiment épatante!The view from this hill is truly stunning!
- 88 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Emma and Lucas are discussing a concert they just attended.
- EmmaLe spectacle était vraiment merveilleux, n'est-ce pas ?The show was truly wonderful, wasn't it?
- LucasOui, j'ai adoré la voix du chanteur.Yes, I loved the singer's voice.
- EmmaL'ambiance dans la salle était aussi merveilleuse.The atmosphere in the room was also wonderful.
- LucasC'était une soirée parfaite, Emma.It was a perfect evening, Emma.
Sources
- Pronunciation: Wiktionary entry merveilleux, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
