This list includes 89 French words that start with O, from “objectif” to “où”. These words are common nouns, verbs, adjectives, and useful expressions you can use for learning, teaching, or translation.
French words that start with O are a mix of everyday vocabulary and useful grammatical items. Many come from Latin roots, and short items like “où” appear often in speech and songs.
Below you’ll find the table with Word, part of speech, English translation, and example sentence.
Word: The headword in French as written, so you can recognize spelling, accents, and look it up quickly.
Part of speech: The grammatical category (noun, verb, adjective, etc.), helping you understand how each word functions in sentences.
English translation: A concise one- to four-word equivalent that gives you immediate meaning and aids fast comprehension.
Example sentence: A short natural French sentence showing common usage, so you can see context and typical word order.
French words that start with O
| Word | Part of speech | English translation | Example sentence | Description |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| oiseau | noun | bird | Un oiseau chante dans l’arbre. | bird; common animal word used in everyday vocabulary. |
| objet | noun | object | Cet objet est cassé. | object; general item, used in many contexts. |
| obtenir | verb | get, obtain | Elle veut obtenir un nouvel emploi. | to obtain/get; frequent verb for receiving or achieving. |
| offrir | verb | offer, give | Je vais offrir un cadeau demain. | to offer/give; common for gifts or service. |
| ouvrir | verb | open | Il ouvre la fenêtre chaque matin. | to open; very common action verb. |
| oublier | verb | forget | J’ai oublié mes clés à la maison. | to forget; everyday verb, irregular past participle oublié. |
| occuper | verb | occupy, take up | Elle occupe un poste important. | to occupy or keep busy; uses reflexive forms for oneself. |
| occasion | noun | occasion, opportunity | C’est une bonne occasion d’apprendre. | occasion/opportunity; collocates «bonne occasion». |
| octobre | noun | October | En octobre, les feuilles tombent. | month (October); lowercase in French. |
| ordinateur | noun | computer | Mon ordinateur est lent aujourd’hui. | computer; essential tech vocabulary. |
| ordonner | verb | order, command | Le médecin lui a ordonné du repos. | to order/prescribe; also used for commands. |
| ordre | noun | order | Respecte l’ordre de la liste. | order; sequence or command. |
| ordinaire | adj | ordinary | C’est un repas ordinaire chez nous. | ordinary; common adjective, contrasts with «extraordinaire». |
| origine | noun | origin | Quelle est l’origine de ce mot? | origin; used for source or beginnings. |
| original | adj | original | Son idée est très originale. | original; meaning novel or authentic. |
| organiser | verb | organize | Nous organisons une fête samedi. | to organize; planning events or tasks. |
| or | expression | but, now | Il veut partir, or il doit rester. | conjunction «or» (formal): means ‘yet’ or ‘however’. |
| ouvert | adj | open | La porte est ouverte. | open; adjective from ouvrir. |
| ouverture | noun | opening | L’ouverture du musée est à dix heures. | opening; start or physical opening. |
| ouest | noun | west | Ils voyagent vers l’ouest demain. | west; cardinal direction. |
| ours | noun | bear | L’ours a disparu du zoo. | bear; animal word. |
| ouvrier | noun | worker | Les ouvriers travaillent sur le chantier. | worker; manual labor, common in news. |
| oui | expression | yes | Oui, je veux venir. | yes; basic affirmation. |
| où | expression | where | Où est la gare? | where; question word, accent distinguishes it from «ou». |
| ou | expression | or | Voulez-vous thé ou café? | or; coordinating conjunction for choices. |
| outre | adv | besides | Outre son travail, il fait du sport. | besides/in addition; somewhat formal. |
| outil | noun | tool | Cet outil est très utile. | tool; physical or software tool. |
| ouïe | noun | hearing | Son ouïe est excellente. | hearing (sense); note the dieresis on ï. |
| oser | verb | dare | Il n’ose pas parler en public. | to dare; often used with an infinitive. |
| obstacle | noun | obstacle | Un obstacle bloque le chemin. | obstacle; literal or figurative hindrance. |
| obscur | adj | dark, obscure | Le tunnel est très obscur. | dark/obscure; literal or figurative meaning. |
| obscurité | noun | darkness | L’obscurité rend la route dangereuse. | darkness; physical or metaphorical. |
| observer | verb | observe | Elle observe les étoiles chaque nuit. | to observe; watch carefully, scientific use. |
| objectif | noun | objective, goal | Notre objectif est clair. | objective/goal; common in business and daily speech. |
| obliger | verb | oblige, force | Les règles l’obligent à rester. | to force/compel; often used with «à». |
| obligation | noun | obligation | Il a une obligation légale. | obligation; duty or legal requirement. |
| obligatoire | adj | mandatory | Le port du casque est obligatoire. | mandatory; used on signs and rules. |
| obscène | adj | obscene | Ce film contient des scènes obscènes. | obscene; formal/legal register. |
| oignon | noun | onion | J’ajoute un oignon à la soupe. | onion; common cooking ingredient. |
| oisif | adj | idle | Il reste oisif tout l’après-midi. | idle; negative connotation about inactivity. |
| olive | noun | olive | Je préfère les olives vertes. | olive; fruit and color. |
| ombre | noun | shade, shadow | Cherchons de l’ombre pour déjeuner. | shade/shadow; literal and metaphorical uses. |
| omettre | verb | omit | N’omettez pas ces détails importants. | to omit; formal, common in writing. |
| on | expression | one, we | On va au cinéma ce soir. | impersonal pronoun ‘one/we’; extremely common. |
| oncle | noun | uncle | Mon oncle habite à Lyon. | uncle; family vocabulary. |
| onde | noun | wave | Une onde a traversé le lac. | wave; physical or electromagnetic. |
| opération | noun | operation | L’opération commence à neuf heures. | operation; medical or procedural. |
| opérer | verb | operate, perform | Le chirurgien opère demain matin. | to operate; medical or technical contexts. |
| opportunité | noun | opportunity | Il a saisi une grande opportunité. | opportunity; chance for advantage. |
| opportun | adj | opportune | C’est un moment opportun pour agir. | opportune; often used in formal registers. |
| opposer | verb | oppose | Ils s’opposent à ce projet. | to oppose; common with reflexive «s’opposer». |
| opposition | noun | opposition | L’opposition critique le gouvernement. | opposition; political or contrary stance. |
| opinion | noun | opinion | Quelle est votre opinion? | opinion; common conversational word. |
| opter | verb | opt, choose | J’opte pour la solution simple. | to opt for; often followed by «pour». |
| option | noun | option | Tu as deux options possibles. | option; choice, alternatives. |
| orage | noun | storm | Un orage approche rapidement. | storm; weather vocabulary. |
| oranger | noun | orange tree | Le jardinier taille l’oranger. | orange tree; botanical term. |
| orange | noun | orange (fruit) | Je mange une orange. | orange; fruit and color. |
| oral | adj | oral | L’examen oral est demain. | oral; spoken exam or presentation. |
| oreille | noun | ear | Elle a mal à l’oreille. | ear; body part. |
| orner | verb | decorate | Ils ornent la salle de fleurs. | to decorate; formal or literary tone. |
| orphelin | noun | orphan | L’enfant était orphelin très jeune. | orphan; also used adjectivally. |
| orthographe | noun | spelling | L’orthographe est importante à l’école. | spelling; key word for learners. |
| osciller | verb | oscillate, sway | Le ventilateur oscille lentement. | to oscillate/sway; used literally and figuratively. |
| os | noun | bone | Il s’est cassé l’os du bras. | bone; anatomical term. |
| osé | adj | daring, risky | C’est une proposition osée. | daring/risky; from verb «oser». |
| ouvrage | noun | work, book | Cet ouvrage traite de la musique. | work/book; literary or technical publication. |
| oxygène | noun | oxygen | Les plantes produisent de l’oxygène. | oxygen; basic science vocabulary. |
| oxyde | noun | oxide | La rouille est un oxyde de fer. | oxide; chemistry term used in general contexts. |
| ovale | adj | oval | La table a une forme ovale. | oval; shape descriptor. |
| ovation | noun | ovation | Le public a fait une ovation debout. | ovation; enthusiastic applause. |
| ovule | noun | ovule | Le biologiste étudie l’ovule. | ovule; biological term, also used in education. |
| ouragan | noun | hurricane | L’ouragan a causé des dégâts importants. | hurricane; severe storm term in news. |
| ourson | noun | bear cub | L’ourson joue avec sa mère. | bear cub; diminutive of «ours». |
| ourler | verb | hem | Il faut ourler ce pantalon. | to hem; common sewing verb. |
| outiller | verb | equip | Il faut outiller l’équipe adéquatement. | to equip; used in business/technical contexts. |
| oubli | noun | oversight, forgetfulness | C’était un oubli, pas une mauvaise intention. | oversight/forgetting; common noun. |
| ouvertement | adv | openly | Elle a parlé ouvertement du problème. | openly; adverb from «ouvert». |
| outrage | noun | outrage | Il a ressenti un profond outrage. | outrage; strong indignation. |
| outrepasser | verb | overstep | Il a outrepassé ses pouvoirs. | to overstep; formal/legal register. |
| onirique | adj | dreamlike | Ce film a un style onirique. | dreamlike; literary adjective. |
| onomatopée | noun | onomatopoeia | «Boum» est une onomatopée. | onomatopoeia; language term learners encounter. |
| onduler | verb | undulate, sway | Les blés ondulent sous le vent. | to undulate/sway; often used with hair or fields. |
| ongle | noun | (fingernail) nail | Elle s’est cassé un ongle. | fingernail; common body vocabulary. |
| onéreux | adj | costly | Ce projet est trop onéreux. | costly/expensive; somewhat formal. |
| opacité | noun | opacity | L’opacité du verre bloque la vue. | opacity; literal or figurative lack of transparency. |
| opéra | noun | opera | On va à l’opéra ce soir. | opera; music/theater genre. |
| obsession | noun | obsession | Cette idée est devenue une obsession. | obsession; fixation, common in psychology/popular press. |
| obséder | verb | obsess | Cette idée l’obsède constamment. | to obsess; used with a person as object. |
Descriptions
oiseau
objet
obtenir
offrir
ouvrir
oublier
occuper
occasion
octobre
ordinateur
ordonner
ordre
ordinaire
origine
original
organiser
or
ouvert
ouverture
ouest
ours
ouvrier
oui
où
ou
outre
outil
ouïe
oser
obstacle
obscur
obscurité
observer
objectif
obliger
obligation
obligatoire
obscène
oignon
oisif
olive
ombre
omettre
on
oncle
onde
opération
opérer
opportunité
opportun
opposer
opposition
opinion
opter
option
orage
oranger
orange
oral
oreille
orner
orphelin
orthographe
osciller
os
osé
ouvrage
oxygène
oxyde
ovale
ovation
ovule
ouragan
ourson
ourler
outiller
oubli
ouvertement
outrage
outrepasser
onirique
onomatopée
onduler
ongle
onéreux
opacité
opéra
obsession
obséder