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French vocabulary · Beginner
How do you say "complain" in French?
se plaindre
In French, "complain" is se plaindre.
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Pronunciation
This is suh plan-DR, with a nasal middle sound and the ending dr said as one quick beat.
Grammar notes
se plaindre is a verb used the same way as its English equivalent.
Example sentence
Il aime se plaindre du temps.
He likes to complain about the weather.
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How to remember se plaindre
To complain is to voice a plaint, and se plaindre keeps that same plaint root.
Related words
- whistle siffler
- yawn bâiller
- hiccup hoqueter
- blink cligner des yeux
- stretch s’étirer
- bend plier
- kneel s’agenouiller
- squat s'accroupir
- compare comparer
Browse all French words in the glossary.
Questions about se plaindre
How do you pronounce se plaindre?
This is suh plan-DR, with a nasal middle sound and the ending dr said as one quick beat.
Is se plaindre formal or casual?
se plaindre is a neutral, everyday word that works in both casual and polite speech.
How is se plaindre used in French?
se plaindre is used the same way as the equivalent English verb. For example: Il aime se plaindre du temps. (He likes to complain about the weather.).
Where can I practice French words for free?
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"Complain" in other languages
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