French adjectives are the difference between un café and un café chaud – in other words, between just pointing and actually describing what you want. Around 1,000 of the most common ones are right here, ready to give your sentences a little colour.
You won’t find dusty textbook relics that nobody uses. This list focuses on adjectives you’ll meet at the market, in a casual chat, or while reading a menu. Each one comes with a clear meaning and a real-world example, so you can see exactly how it behaves in a French sentence.
Scroll to the bottom of this article for the free printable common French adjectives vocabulary list PDF and the free downloadable printable common French adjectives flashcards — both ready when you want to study offline.
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Browse the Full List
| Word | Type | Meaning | Audio |
|---|---|---|---|
| nucléaire | Adjective | nuclear | |
| objectif | Adjective | objective | |
| obligé | Adjective | obliged | |
| occident | Noun | West | |
| occupant | oh-ku-pahn | ||
| occupé | oh-ku-pay | ||
| officiel | Adjective | official | |
| onde | Noun | wave | |
| ongle | Noun | nail | |
| onze | Adjective | eleven | |
| orange | oh-rahnzh | ||
| ordinaire | Adjective | ordinary, run of the mill, run-of-the-mill, common-and-garden | |
| ordonné | Adjective | ordered | |
| orgie | Noun | orgy | |
| original | Adjective | original, genuine | |
| osé | Adjective | daring | |
| OTAN | Noun | NATO | |
| ouvert | oo-vehr | ||
| paille | Noun | straw | |
| pair | Noun | peer | |
| pâle | Adjective | pale, pallid, faded, drab, lurid, sallow, wan, washy | |
| panique | Adjective | panicked | |
| paperasse | Noun | bumf | |
| pareil | pa-ray | ||
| paresseux | Adjective | lazy |
Free French Adjective Vocabulary List PDF and Flashcards
Download the purple vocab-list button for your common French adjectives vocabulary list, then grab the teal flashcards button for common French adjectives flashcards. Both are 100% free and require no signup.
