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French Word of the Day: Tranquille

The Local France
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French Word of the Day: Tranquille
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You'll hear the word tranquille used in so many contexts in French that it's a need to know word.

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Why have we chosen it as the word of the day?

You might already be familiar with the adjective tranquille but, if you keep your ears open, you’ll hear it popping all the time in places you wouldn’t automatically expect in French conversations. So it's well worth knowing how to use it.

What does tranquille mean?

A direct translation for tranquille will bring up the words 'calm', 'quiet', and 'peaceful'. 

In some cases, this is exactly what it means – if you’re having a quiet day in the office you could definitely describe it as tranquille. Or if you’re planning to relax at home next weekend home you’ll have a week-end tranquille.

You will also hear tranquille used by stressed out parents. Tiens-toi tranquille! means 'be quiet!'. And if a child wants their parents to stop bugging them she or he is likely to respond laisse moi tranquille, which means 'leave me alone'.

It can also be used to describe how peaceful a place is. Such as cette parc est très tranquille, which would mean 'this park is really quiet'.

You’ll hear sois tranquille used to mean ‘don’t worry’, and in colloquial French the word tranquille has taken on a meaning that is closer to this context.

Between friends, and especially young French people, this adjective can be used to say you’re chilled out or have no worries.

For example, you might hear Ça va? Tranquille. (How are you? All good.)

It can also be used as a way to say ‘sure’ or ‘no problem’, such as Tu as retrouver tes clés? Tranquile. (Did you find your keys? Sure.) 

And in the headline below it translates as: "Chilled: Elon Musk smokes a joint in a live interview".

So, how can I use it in a sentence?

- Tout se passe bien ici? - Oui, tranquille.

-  Is everything ok in here? - Yeah, all good.

- Vous allez arriver à l’heure? – Tranquille.

- Are you going to arrive on time? - Sure, no problem.

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Anonymous 2018/10/04 20:53
Just as a matter of interest. In Guernsey, my wife`s native island,they have several Rue Tranquille where cyclist, horse riders and pedestrians have the right of way over cars.<br />Our eldest son lives in a Route Tranquille and it is great to know we cannot enjoy a walk in it without fear of being being in danger.

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