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Translating "free" into French
The English word “free” can be an adjective, adverb, verb, or noun and has a number of different meanings, which can make it difficult to translate into French. Take a look at this lesson on how to say free in French.
Free = adjective
1) free = costing nothing = gratuit, (informal) gratis
| free admission | entrée gratuite, entrée libre | |
| free delivery | la livraison gratuite, franco de port | |
| free French lessons | leçons de français gratuites | |
| free newspaper | un journal gratis | |
| free offer | une offre gratuite | |
| free sample | un Ă©chantillon gratuit | |
| free trip | un voyage gratis |
2) free = at liberty; not imprisoned, tied up, or controlled = libre
| as free as a bird, as free as the air (UK) | libre comme l’air | |
| the free movement of people | la libre circulation des personnes | |
| free radical | un radical libre |
3) free = politically independent = libre
| free elections | les Ă©lections libres | |
| free enterprise | la libre entreprise | |
| free-enterprise economy | une économie de marché | |
| free press | la presse libre | |
| free trade | le libre-Ă©change | |
| free-trader | un libre-Ă©changiste | |
| free world | le monde libre | |
| the Free French Forces, Free French Army | les Forces françaises libres |
4) free = unrestrained = libre
| free association | la libre association | |
| free choice | le choix libre | |
| free climbing | une escalade libre | |
| free diving | la plongée libre | |
| free fall | une chute libre | |
| in free fall | en chute libre | |
| to go into free fall | entamer une chute libre | |
| free kick | un coup franc, un coup de pied arrĂȘtĂ© | |
| free love | un amour libre | |
| free-fire zone | un secteur / une zone de tir libre | |
| free flight | le vol libre | |
| free skating | les figures libres de patinage | |
| free spirit | un esprit libre | |
| free-spirited | (person) libre d’esprit, (ways) libre | |
| free translation | la traduction libre | |
| free verse | le vers libre | |
| free will | le libre arbitre, son propre gré | |
| You’re free to choose | Vous ĂȘtes libre de choisir |
5) free = unoccupied, available, not taken/used = libre
| free period/hour | une heure (de) libre | |
| I will be free at 2 o’clock | je serai libre Ă 14 heures | |
| free space | un espace libre | |
| This seat is free (empty) | Cette place est libre | |
| Is this table free? | Cette table est-elle libre ? | |
| one’s free hand | sa main libre | |
| to have one’s hands free | avoir les mains libres |
6) free from/of
= dégagé de, non touché par, non soumis à , sans
| free from obligation | dégagé de toute obligation | |
| free of malaria | non touché par la malaria | |
| free from copyright | non soumis au droit d’auteur | |
| free of worries | sans souci |
Free = adverb
1) free = without payment = gratuitement, gratis
| to enter free of charge | entrer gratuitement | |
| to travel for free | voyager gratis |
2) free = without restraint = en liberté
| to leave someone free (at large) | laisser quelqu’un en libertĂ© |
Free in expressions and compound nouns
| duty free | exonéré, hors taxe | ||
| to be a free agent | avoir toute libertĂ© d’action | ||
| free and easy | décontracté, désinvolte | ||
| free clinic | un dispensaire | ||
| It’s a free country! | On est en rĂ©publique ! On peut faire ce qu’on veut ici ! | ||
| free energy | une Ă©nergie libre, utilisable | ||
| free fight | une mĂȘlĂ©e gĂ©nĂ©rale | ||
| free-floating | (in water) (person) | qui flotte librement sans attaches | |
| free-for-all | la mĂȘlĂ©e gĂ©nĂ©rale | ||
| free gift | un cadeau publicitaire | ||
| as a free gift | en prime, en cadeau | ||
| free hand (to do whatever you want) | carte blanche | ||
| to give (someone) a free hand | donner carte blanche Ă (quelqu’un) | ||
| to have a free hand to do something | avoir carte blanche pour faire quelque chose | ||
| free hit | le coup franc | ||
| free house (UK) | un pub qui n’appartient pas Ă une chaĂźne | ||
| free jazz | le free-jazz | ||
| free kick | un coup franc | ||
| free labor (i.e., non-union) | la main-d’Ćuvre non syndiquĂ©e | ||
| There’s no such thing as a free lunch | Tout se paie | ||
| free market, free-market economy | une économie de marché | ||
| free-marketeer | un partisan de l’Ă©conomie de marchĂ© | ||
| free of charge | gratuit, gratuitement | ||
| free on board | (freight) | franco Ă bord | |
| free on rail | (freight) | franco wagon | |
| free period | une heure (de) libre, une heure sans cours | ||
| free port | le port franc | ||
| free-range egg | un Ćuf de poule Ă©levĂ©e en plein air | ||
| free-range poultry | des poulets élevés en plein air | ||
| to get a free ride | (figurative) | profiter de la situation | |
| free shot | un lancer franc, un coup franc | ||
| free speech | la liberté de parole | ||
| free-standing | sur pied | ||
| free-styling | le ski acrobatique | ||
| free throw | un lancer franc | ||
| free-trade zone | la zone franche | ||
| free vote | un vote en conscience (sans consigne de vote) | ||
| The land of the free | Le pays de la liberté | ||
| tax free | exonéré, hors taxe | ||
Free as a verb and in expressions with verbs
| to be/get free of someone | se dĂ©barrasser/ĂȘtre dĂ©barrassĂ© de quelqu’un | |
| to be free (at liberty) | ĂȘtre en libertĂ© | |
| to feel free (to do) | se sentir libre (de), ne pas hésiter (à ) | |
| May I … ? Feel free. | Puis-je …Â ? Je vous en prie, Faites. | |
| to free (release, liberate, set free) | affranchir, libérer, mettre en liberté | |
| to free (unblock) a pipe | débloquer, déboucher | |
| to be free to do something | ĂȘtre libre de faire qqchose | |
| to free from | libérer, débarrasser, délivrer de | |
| to free from burden | soulager, débarrasser | |
| to free from a knot | détacher | |
| to free from tax | exempter, exonérer | |
| to free from wreckage | dégager, désincarcérer | |
| to free oneself from | se libérer, se débarrasser, se dégager, se délivrer de | |
| to free up | dégager, libérer | |
| to get free (escape) | se libérer | |
| to go free (be let go) | ĂȘtre relĂąchĂ©, ĂȘtre mis en libertĂ© | |
| to leave free to do | laisser carte blanche Ă quelqu’un | |
| to pull free from | se libérer, se débarrasser, se dégager, se délivrer de |
Related expressions
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Pleased to see that the French don’t say ‘for free’ which isn’t correct English, as if you use ‘for’ it should indicate an amount, and ‘free’ isn’t that. You travel ‘free’, that is without cost.