Vivre Expressions

Vivre - French expressions
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Living French Phrases

The French verb vivre, “to live,” is found in many idiomatic expressions, including to live hand to mouth, to keep someone going, and to pay the bills. Learn these and dozens of other French expressions featuring vivre.

Vivre translations

  • to live
  • to be alive
  • to spend (one’s days)

Proverbs with vivre

L’espoir fait vivre.   Where there’s life, there’s hope.
L’homme ne vit pas seulement de pain.   Man shall not live by bread alone.
Il faut manger pour vivre, et non pas vivre pour manger.   You have to eat to live, not live to eat.
Qui vivra verra.   What will be will be.

Expressions with vivre

vivre au jour le jour   to live from hand to mouth
vivre aux crochets de quelqu’un (informal)   to live/sponge off someone
vivre avec quelqu’un   to live with someone
vivre avec son époque   to move with the times
vivre avec son temps   to move with the times
vivre bien   to live well
vivre centenaire   to live to be 100
vivre comme mari et femme   to live as husband and wife
vivre d’amour et d’eau fraîche   to live on love alone, to live a carefree life
vivre dangereusement   to live dangerously
vivre dans la crainte   to live in fear
vivre dans la précarité   to live from hand to mouth
vivre dans les livres   to live in books
vivre dans le passé   to live in the past
vivre de   to live on, make a living from
vivre de l’air du temps   to live on air
vivre des temps troublés   to live in troubled times
vivre en paix (avec soi-même)   to be at peace (with oneself)
vivre largement   to live well
vivre le présent   to live for the present
vivre l’instant   to live for the moment
vivre mal quelque chose    to have a hard time of something
vivre que pour quelque chose   to live for something
vivre sa foi   to live out one’s faith
vivre sa vie   to live one’s own life
vivre son art   to live out one’s art
vivre sur sa réputation   to get by on the strength of one’s reputation
vivre une période de crise   to be going through a period of crisis
vivre vieux   to live to a ripe old age
     
l’art de vivre   way of life
avoir (juste) de quoi vivre   to have (just) enough to live on
Ça lui apprendra à vivre   That’ll straighten him out.
être difficile à vivre   to be difficult to live with
être facile à vivre   to be easy to live with
faire vivre quelqu’un   to support someone, keep someone going
Il fait bon vivre.   It’s good to be alive.
Il faut bien vivre !   You have to live!
Il me fait vivre.   It pays the bills, It’s a living.
Il vit un beau roman d’amour.   His life is a love story come true.
Je vais lui apprendre à vivre.   I’ll teach him a thing or two.
la joie de vivre   joy of life
Laissez-les vivre !   Let them be!
le mal de vivre   great discontentment
On ne voyait âme qui vive.   There wasn’t a living soul to be seen.
Qui vive ?   Who goes there?
la raison de vivre   reason for living
savoir vivre   to know how to make the most of life
to have good manners, know how to behave 
le savoir-vivre   good manners
se laisser vivre   to live for the day, to take life as it comes
travailler pour vivre   to work for a living
le vivre et le couvert   bed and board
le vivre et le logement   room and board
___ a vécu.   ___ is over, is a thing of the past, has had its day.
     
Vive … !   Long live …! Hurrah for …!
Vive la différence !   Hurray for differences!
Vive la France !   Long live France!
Vive la liberté !   Hurray for freedom!
Vive la République !   Long live the Republic!
     
les vivres   supplies, provisions
couper les vivres à quelqu’un   to cut off someone’s means of subsistence
être sur le qui-vive   to be on the alert
     
la vie   life
C’est la vie !   That’s life!
La vie ne vaut pas la peine d’être vécue.   Life isn’t worth living.
vivant (adjective)   living, alive, lively
de son vivant   in his/her lifetime
la vive-eau   spring tide
vivement (adverb)   brusquely, sharply

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French expressions with vivre

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