FlexiLingoIn one line
This field turns up in environmental exam texts — and several animals are used figuratively in everyday phrases.
Nouns
Landscape
| French | Pronunciation | English |
|---|---|---|
la nature | /na.tyʁ/ | nature |
le paysage | /pe.i.zaʒ/ | landscape |
la montagne | /mɔ̃.taɲ/ | mountain |
la colline | /kɔ.lin/ | hill |
la forêt | /fɔ.ʁɛ/ | forest |
l'arbre (m.) | /aʁbʁ/ | tree |
la fleur | /flœʁ/ | flower |
l'herbe (f.) | /ɛʁb/ | grass |
la feuille | /fœj/ | leaf |
le champ | /ʃɑ̃/ | field |
la rivière | /ʁi.vjɛʁ/ | river (inland) |
le fleuve | /flœv/ | river (to the sea) |
le lac | /lak/ | lake |
la mer | /mɛʁ/ | sea |
l'océan (m.) | /ɔ.se.ɑ̃/ | ocean |
la plage | /plaʒ/ | beach |
l'île (f.) | /il/ | island |
le désert | /de.zɛʁ/ | desert |
le ciel | /sjɛl/ | sky |
l'étoile (f.) | /e.twal/ | star |
la lune | /lyn/ | moon |
la terre | /tɛʁ/ | earth, soil |
la pierre | /pjɛʁ/ | stone |
le sable | /sabl/ | sand |
la rivièreis a river that flows into another river,le fleuveone that reaches the sea.la Seineis afleuve.
English has one word, "river", and no way to hear the difference. The French split is not about size — the Seine is a
fleuveand some far larger waterways are not. It is about the destination: reaches the sea →fleuve; flows into another river →rivière.In practice,
la rivièreis the safe default in conversation, andle fleuveis what you need for geography texts and exam reading.
Animals
| French | Pronunciation | English |
|---|---|---|
l'animal (m.) les animaux | /a.ni.mal/ · /a.ni.mo/ | animal |
le chien | /ʃjɛ̃/ | dog |
le chat | /ʃa/ | cat |
le cheval les chevaux | /ʃə.val/ · /ʃə.vo/ | horse |
la vache | /vaʃ/ | cow |
le mouton | /mu.tɔ̃/ | sheep |
le cochon | /kɔ.ʃɔ̃/ | pig |
la poule | /pul/ | hen |
le coq | /kɔk/ | cockerel |
l'oiseau (m.) les oiseaux | /wa.zo/ | bird |
le poisson | /pwa.sɔ̃/ | fish |
la souris | /su.ʁi/ | mouse |
le lapin | /la.pɛ̃/ | rabbit |
le renard | /ʁə.naʁ/ | fox |
le loup | /lu/ | wolf |
l'ours (m.) | /uʁs/ | bear |
le lion | /ljɔ̃/ | lion |
le singe | /sɛ̃ʒ/ | monkey |
l'abeille (f.) | /a.bɛj/ | bee |
la mouche | /muʃ/ | fly |
l'araignée (f.) | /a.ʁɛ.ɲe/ | spider |
le serpent | /sɛʁ.pɑ̃/ | snake |
cheval→chevauxandanimal→animaux— the-alending becomes-auxin the plural. Seepluriel.
Male and female
A few domestic animals have two separate words:
| Male | Female | English |
|---|---|---|
le chat /ʃa/ | la chatte /ʃat/ | cat |
le chien /ʃjɛ̃/ | la chienne /ʃjɛn/ | dog |
le lion /ljɔ̃/ | la lionne /ljɔn/ | lion |
le loup /lu/ | la louve /luv/ | wolf |
le coq /kɔk/ | la poule /pul/ | cockerel · hen |
le cheval /ʃə.val/ | la jument /ʒy.mɑ̃/ | horse · mare |
The rest have one grammatical gender only — la souris stays feminine for a male mouse, and le serpent stays masculine for a female snake. If you need to specify, add mâle /mɑl/ or femelle /fə.mɛl/: une souris mâle. Fully set out in genre-nom.
The environment
| French | Pronunciation | English |
|---|---|---|
l'environnement (m.) | /ɑ̃.vi.ʁɔn.mɑ̃/ | environment |
la pollution | /pɔ.ly.sjɔ̃/ | pollution |
le climat | /kli.ma/ | climate |
l'espèce (f.) | /ɛs.pɛs/ | species |
la biodiversité | /bjo.di.vɛʁ.si.te/ | biodiversity |
la forêt tropicale | /fo.ʁɛ tʁo.pi.kal/ | rainforest |
le parc naturel | /paʁk na.ty.ʁɛl/ | nature reserve |
la protection | /pʁɔ.tɛk.sjɔ̃/ | protection |
Verbs
| Verb | Pronunciation | English |
|---|---|---|
pousser | /pu.se/ | to grow |
planter | /plɑ̃.te/ | to plant |
cueillir | /kœ.jiʁ/ | to pick |
couler | /ku.le/ | to flow |
voler | /vɔ.le/ | to fly |
nager | /na.ʒe/ | to swim |
courir | /ku.ʁiʁ/ | to run |
chasser | /ʃa.se/ | to hunt |
protéger | /pʁɔ.te.ʒe/ | to protect |
polluer | /pɔ.lɥe/ | to pollute |
disparaître | /dis.pa.ʁɛtʁ/ | to disappear |
se promener | /sə pʁɔm.ne/ | to walk, to stroll |
Adjectives
| Masculine | Feminine | English |
|---|---|---|
naturel /na.ty.ʁɛl/ | naturelle /na.ty.ʁɛl/ | natural |
sauvage /so.vaʒ/ | sauvage /so.vaʒ/ | wild |
domestique /do.mɛs.tik/ | domestique /do.mɛs.tik/ | domestic |
vert /vɛʁ/ | verte /vɛʁt/ | green |
pollué /pɔ.ly.e/ | polluée /pɔ.ly.e/ | polluted |
propre /pʁɔpʁ/ | propre /pʁɔpʁ/ | clean |
protégé /pʁo.te.ʒe/ | protégée /pʁo.te.ʒe/ | protected |
en voie de disparition /ɑ̃ vwa də dis.pa.ʁi.sjɔ̃/ | — | endangered |
rural /ʁy.ʁal/ | rurale /ʁy.ʁal/ | rural |
urbain /yʁ.bɛ̃/ | urbaine /yʁ.bɛn/ | urban |
Set phrases
| French | Pronunciation | English |
|---|---|---|
à la campagne | /a la kɑ̃.paɲ/ | in the country |
en plein air | /ɑ̃ plɛ.n‿ɛʁ/ | outdoors |
avoir un chien | /a.vwaʁ œ̃ ʃjɛ̃/ | to have a dog |
faire une randonnée | /fɛʁ yn ʁɑ̃.dɔ.ne/ | to go hiking |
il fait un temps de chien | /il fɛt œ̃ tɑ̃ də ʃjɛ̃/ | the weather is foul |
avoir une faim de loup | /a.vwaʁ yn fɛ̃ də lu/ | to be ravenous |
il pleut des cordes | /il plø de kɔʁd/ | it's pouring |
poser un lapin à quelqu'un | /po.ze œ̃ la.pɛ̃ a kɛl.kœ̃/ | to stand someone up |
donner sa langue au chat | /dɔ.ne sa lɑ̃ɡ o ʃa/ | to give up guessing |
avoir la chair de poule | /a.vwaʁ la ʃɛʁ də pul/ | to have goosebumps |
être comme un poisson dans l'eau | /ɛtʁ kɔm œ̃ pwa.sɔ̃ dɑ̃ lo/ | to be in one's element |
Three of these are the same idiom in English, and three are not.
French English avoir la chair de poulegoosebumps — same bird, same image être comme un poisson dans l'eauin one's element — English says "like a fish out of water" for the opposite il pleut des cordesit's raining cats and dogs — same idea, different image And three you cannot guess:
poser un lapin(to stand someone up) has nothing to do with rabbits,un temps de chienis bad weather rather than "a dog's life", anddonner sa langue au chatmeans to give up on a riddle, not to lose your tongue.
Traps
| Trap | Explanation |
|---|---|
-al becomes -aux in the plural | animal → animaux cheval → chevaux. |
la souris is both a mouse and a computer mouse | Context decides. |
la souris is always feminine | Even a male mouse. For sex, une souris mâle. See genre-nom. |
voler means both to fly and to steal | Explained in voyage. |
la mer and la mère are homophones | Both /mɛʁ/. Context decides. See homophones. |
le temps is both weather and time | un temps de chien is bad weather. |
poser un lapin means to stand someone up | Nothing to do with rabbits — it is a fixed idiom. |
l'herbe has a silent h | l'herbe, les herbes /le.z‿ɛʁb/. |
Why this field turns up in exams
because the environment is one of the six standard topics
In reading and writing, the environment is the most frequent topic — it is neutral, international, and easy to have an opinion about.
So this vocabulary earns its keep twice:
| Where | What you need | Pronunciation |
|---|---|---|
| reading | pollution, réchauffement, espèce, disparition | /pɔ.ly.sjɔ̃/ · /ʁe.ʃof.mɑ̃/ · /ɛs.pɛs/ · /dis.pa.ʁi.sjɔ̃/ |
| writing | the same, plus the verbs réduire, préserver, protéger | /ʁe.dɥiʁ/ · /pʁe.zɛʁ.ve/ · /pʁɔ.te.ʒe/ |
And some ready-made phrases that fit any environmental prompt:
| French | Pronunciation | English |
|---|---|---|
préserver l'environnement | /pʁe.zɛʁ.ve lɑ̃.vi.ʁɔn.mɑ̃/ | to protect the environment |
réduire son empreinte carbone | /ʁe.dɥiʁ sɔ̃n ɑ̃.pʁɛ̃t kaʁ.bɔn/ | to reduce one's carbon footprint |
les espèces en voie de disparition | /ɛs.pɛs.z‿ɑ̃ vwa də dis.pa.ʁi.sjɔ̃/ | endangered species |
le développement durable | /de.vlɔp.mɑ̃ dy.ʁabl/ | sustainable development |
les gestes du quotidien | /ʒɛst dy ko.ti.djɛ̃/ | everyday actions |
trier ses déchets | /tʁi.e se de.ʃɛ/ | to sort one's recycling |
limiter le gaspillage | /li.mi.te lə ɡas.pi.jaʒ/ | to cut down on waste |
The animal names matter less — except in texts about extinction.
But the idiomatic phrases (avoir une faim de loup, poser un lapin) come up in the listening paper, and since they do not mean what they say, they have to be recognised rather than worked out.