pire
/piʁ/
The English word 'worse' can be translated into French as pire or plus mauvais.
Meaning: comparative form of bad (adj)
Ways to say it
| French | IPA |
|---|---|
| pire | /piʁ/ |
| plus mauvais |
In French, 'worse' is the comparative form of the adjective 'bad'.
Which one should you use?
Use plus mauvais when making a direct comparison of quality or performance between two specific objects (e.g., 'this apple is worse than that one'). Note that if you want to say 'worse' as an adverb to modify a verb (meaning 'more badly'), use the phrase plus mal.
Is it said differently in some regions?
In Quebec, Canada, the phrase c'est plus pire is used to mean 'it's worse'.
Related words
How does it change in a sentence?
Use plus mal to mean 'worse' only when modifying a verb (adverbial use), whereas pire and plus mauvais modify nouns (adjectival use).
How do you pronounce it?
/piʁ/
Did you know?
- The word pire descends from a Proto-Indo-European root meaning 'to the ground' or 'downward'. This suggests that 'worse' is linguistically linked to the physical act of falling or being low.
- The French word mauvais is a close relative of the English word 'malice'. Both share a root meaning 'bad' that traveled through various Latin and Romance languages.
- While plus pire is common in Quebec, it is considered a grammatical error in standard French because pire already includes the meaning of 'more'.
Examples in context
- J'ai vu bien pire.I've seen a lot worse.This sentence shows the use of pire.Tatoeba #8386416 by Aiji, translation #4976800 by CK
- Tu es pire que Tom.You're worse than Tom.This sentence uses pire to compare one person to another.Tatoeba #5419859 by Aiji, translation #2546851 by CK
- La tienne est pire.Yours is worse.Tatoeba #6176427 by sicerabibax, translation #2255473 by CK
- La situation est pire qu'avantThe situation is worse than before
- Ceci est le plus mauvais choix possibleThis is the worst possible choice
- Son résultat était moins bon que prévuHis result was worse than expected
- Lui, c'est un mauvais conducteur, pire encore, il n'a même pas de permis!He's a bad driver, worse yet, he doesn't even have a license!
- La situation économique est pire que prévuThe economic situation is worse than expected
- Je me sens de moins en moins bien chaque jourI feel worse every day
- Ce film est pire que le précédent!This movie is worse than the previous one!
- La nouvelle voiture de Pierre est méchamment plus moche que la précédentePierre's new car is way uglier than the previous one
- C'est de pire en pire.It's getting worse and worse.
- 132 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Nathan and Chloé are discussing the weather during a hike.
- NathanIl commence à pleuvoir.It is starting to rain.
- ChloéC'est pire que ce matin.It is worse than this morning.
- NathanOn devrait faire demi-tour.We should turn back.
- ChloéTu as raison, Nathan.You are right, Nathan.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “worse” translations and entries pire, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries mauvais, pire, plus, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
